Shadows Within Fiore
by JapanDreamer09
Summary: What happens when you put two evil organizations together? Why, chaos. Join Lunick and Wes as they try to save their friends. But can a ranger and a thief/trainer get along when their beliefs are so different? What shadows are lurking in Fiore?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: This story does not own Pokemon. If it did, then this author would be very happy.**

Hey guys! Some of you might know me already but I'm going to introduce myself again for those who don't. Skip if you want but I promise intros won't be this long the next time I update.

My name is **JapanDreamer09**, but you can call me JD or JP for short. I will respond to reviews whether or not you're a member on this net (But not immediately). I will talk about random stuff too in my **Author's Notes** so read them if you want to strike up a conversation. This is my fourth story that I have tried to write as a series (I deleted one before.) so let me know if you like it or not.

I've noticed on the net (unless I'm not looking carefully enough) that there are not a lot of Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon Ranger stories compare to others. So I thought, why not write a story about the both of them? And so here we are. The timeline of the story is undetermined as of now since combining stories makes it difficult to decide. By the way, the title is lame so I might change it later.

**Update**: I have revised this chapter because I feel it is very unrealistic and quite a few reviewers noted on my horrible grammar (which I'm grateful for). It's still not perfect but it should be better than before. Also, because it is more realistic, the rating will be higher.

I had not play Colosseum (as in the entire thing) so I apologize to any reader earlier when I confused Team Cipher and Snagem in this prologue. My memory of the storyline is very shaky, so I might have to watch some videos of the gameplay before I update again.

Now, I won't be hurt or sad if you write that you hate it (Well I would, but I won't be bawling in tears). I've been updating the two other stories for a while and I feel a need to have a change in pace. **Your reviews** will determine if this story will be updated at a regularly or not. For now, this story is an 'update when I have inspiration' type.

Positive criticism is accepted and no flames please.

Enjoy!

**Prologue:**

"Rui, run faster!" Wes yelled as he ran through the desert in the dark moonless night. The faint stars that blinked once in a while when the clouds moved away were the only source of light that Wes used to guide him in this endless wasteland. Behind him was a girl, about the same age as him, who had reddish orange hair that stood up like small pigtails that sprouted on top of her head. Her pink boots were filled with sand and her blue jacket was already feeling gritty. Her eyes were watering because she didn't have thick silver plated goggles to protect her eyes like Wes did. The helicopters were roaring overhead, creating huge dust clouds to cover the two. Lights were flashing like a beacon from these air vehicles and Wes definitely didn't want to be in the spotlight.

The girl didn't respond with words but with coughing as she inhaled the particles of sand. They were trying to climb over a sand dune but the effort was slowing them down.

"You could…" Rui coughed again before she finished her sentence, "try and help me!" Wes didn't respond and continued to run ahead. He was moving with such ease that it was almost impossible for Rui to catch up with her white mini skirt. Plus, the sand was stinging her skin.

_Humph, such a rude guy_, Rui thought as she pouted. _Definitely not a shining knight in armor…_ Even though she thought this, deep down, she knows that Wes cares more than he acted. After all, he saved her once and though he ignored her, he never pushed her away. He protected her from that evil organization that was after her ability….

Suddenly, Rui tripped on the sand and fell to the ground. "KAAA!" she screamed from the fall. She could feel her knees bleeding from the harsh blowing of the sand. Wes stopped, and without hesitation, grabbed Rui by the arm to pull her up.

"Get up!" Wes said, not with irritation but with urgency, "If they find us –." Suddenly, the two of them were under a very bright light coming from above in the sky.

"They're over here!" A loud speaker announced; the sound echoed in the vast wasteland. Wes gritted his teeth. He pulled Rui up and tried to run away from the light but it was too late. Immediately, ten guys slid down ropes and jumped from the helicopter. The two escapees were now surrounded by bald guys with head phones and wearing red vests and long black pants to match their boots. They all had one glove on their right hands that had some strange mechanism.

"Well, well, Wes," one of these thugs said in a long drawling voice, "It has been a while. How long has it been since you betrayed this group?" The guy motioned with his head at Wes' left arm which had a strange dark blue shoulder pad that extended down his arm. The man didn't need to say anything to Wes for him to know what the guy was talking about.

Wes merely frowned and didn't respond, instead, he brought both of his arms up as though to shield Rui from these guys. The team of thugs couldn't see what Wes was thinking because the guy had his silver goggles over his eyes. The strong wind from the helicopters caused Wes' silver hair to flutter. On his face, there was a long thin white line, going across from left to right, just above his nose.

"Hand over the girl," the same guy from before demanded, "You do realize the reason why you can't fight against us and had to keep running away right?" Wes didn't respond and brought his black gloved hands up into fists as though hand combat was the only way to get out of this situation. Immediately, the whole group of thugs laughed, as though this gesture was nothing but a joke. Rui trembled as she hid behind Wes' back.

"Seriously, Wes," another guy said after the whole group had their shares of laughs, "Do you think you'll win against Team Snagem like that?" Immediately, ten Pokemon jumped down from the helicopter as well and stood in a ring around Wes and Rui. The darkness covered their appearance, but Rui could still see the dark shadow aura from each of the Pokemon. There was a deep silence as though nobody knew what to say.

"Let's have some fun first before we take the girl in," someone suggested. "Our little traitor could use a reunion party." Of course, Team Snagem's idea of fun is not exactly what 'fun' usually is. Rui flinched at this comment and for the first time spoke up.

"NO!" Rui pleaded, "Please take me. Don't hurt Wes!" However, everyone else thought it was a good idea to teach the deserter a lesson and charged at Wes.

Wes immediately pushed back Rui away from him and waited for his attackers. It was nothing but chaos. Wes was doing his best to attack ten guys at once, but the odds were against him. He only managed to elbow punch and use several swift kicks to knock at least five guys – no real damage. On the other hand, Wes got badly injured – punched in the face, shoulder and legs. It was a miracle that he managed to still be standing even though he was at his limit. Rui was on the verge of tears and had to close her eyes. But finally, the Cipher members decided that it was getting too boring now it was time to finish this.

They all took out something from their pocket that could fit to their hand. Rui flinched again. She didn't need to see them clearly to know what they have. It was the same one that the Snagem members used on them earlier.

"Say hello to our new invention… again. Let's hope you can dodge as well as before." Wes flinched as well. Those devices were created to be used on Pokemon but these guys obviously have taken it to another level.

"NOOOO!" Rui screamed. "STOPPPP!" But nothing could be done and Wes watched as the first one came at him and slammed against his silver goggles.

…

The night was still again. The helicopters were gone and the darkness engulfed the whole wasteland again. The only thing here in this desert was Wes, who was laying face first against the sandy ground – alone. They had their fun and taken Rui away. She tried to fight back but couldn't stand against ten guys. Those Snagem guys apparently seemed to have a habit of assuming too much because they didn't do a good job of finishing Wes off.

Wes' whole body was covered with jabbing pain and bruises. There were huge stains of blood all over his blue overcoat jacket. He had severe deep cuts on his face and his nose was dripping with blood, and his broken silver goggle lay several feet away. He stared dimly up at the dark sky. He couldn't get up because his legs have taken a severe beating. His right arm was broken for sure from the heavy impact of those devices. He looked at his left hand that was still clutching tightly onto the machine that the Snagem members used on him. As his old boss had said about him, "Once a thief, always a thief."

Wes managed to swipe it from other their noses. Though broken and had several parts missing, Wes could tell that it looked like some kind of top but bigger. It managed to spin and charged at him again and again like a boomerang. The question was how they controlled it…

Wes felt his whole body drifting to a death like state. Rui was captured and now the Snagem Team was back with a new type of power. Suddenly, in his weakened state, he remembered what those thugs were saying earlier after they defeated him. He remembered how Rui was screaming and kicking as much as possible.

_Hurry and get the girl! Come on, the kid is dead! We need to get back to Fiore!_

Fiore… Wes thought slowly as though his head was having a hard time to process the information. He had quite a bit of distance to travel. If he was going to hurry and save Rui and figure out what was going on, he can't die here. Not now.

With that thought in mind, Wes struggled to get up and keep his eyes awake from a deep slumber that he might never wake up from again.

**Author's Notes**

Okay, that's it for now.

For those who read my other stories, THOSE will still be updated at usual pace (random times. lol) so don't worry about whether or not this story will take up time for the other two.

Review if possible so I can decide if this is good enough to continue.

**-JapanDreamer**


	2. The First Meeting

**Disclaimer: No Pokemon was hurt in the making of this because none were owned.  
**

Hey guys, I've had another inspiration and decided to update. This is pretty long because I had to add some information from both regions.

First off, nine reviews! Yay! Must be a personal new record for me. :D Sorry, I get happy over the littlest and random things.

Remember to review and comment so I know whether or not to make this a regular update.

Anyways, enjoy!

**Chapter 1:**

_One week later…_

Fiore was a region that was boarded by the mountain on one side and the ocean on the other. Here, Pokemon were not considered for battle but as companions. The most unique thing about this place was that there were no stores that sold Pokeballs. Every person was encouraged to leave their Pokemon out. However, there are times when there are problems from nature or from wild Pokemon that called for the need of help.

Hence, trainers weren't born here but Rangers. Pokemon rangers communicate through nature to help people and Pokemon. Because of this strong belief, Fiore was typically a calm region that uses negotiations and peaceful methods to solve problems.

Up north in Fiore, the large mountains were covered with all year long snow, and while along the border of the ocean, lush trees consume the rest of the place. There are exactly four major cities in this place, and each city represents the seasons of the year. Fall City, in the center of the region, was one of the most popular and well known ports because of its cool climate and its popular attractions such as the lighthouse, the Joy Clock Tower in the middle of the town, and Amity Square. But perhaps the most important contribution to this place was it large popular port where every ship came in to deliver and trade goods.

On this particular day, there was a young Pokemon ranger who was finishing a job in the least popular attraction of Fall City and possibly, in any other city.

Lunick climbed out of the sewage hole and finally breathed in the fresh air for the first time since the last couple of hours. His short black hair that parted to left and right of his head and his red headband were covered with green gunk and who knows what else was in that water work pipeline.

"Bleaghhh! I thought I was going to die in there," Lunick gasped as though he had been holding his breath the whole time. He had his tongue stuck out because he could still taste the stench of the Grimer's oozing poisonous bodies. He got out of the hole and shook the green slime that covered his red jacket and black and white uniform.

Lunick couldn't believe that he was stuck doing the dirty work in Fall City. Everyone else was on a less 'disgusting' mission. Lunick isn't part of the Fall City's ranger force but is actually a part of Ring Town which was on the west side. He was specifically called here to Fall City because the lack of rangers here because there was some important mission. Although he understood the importance of his job and not complaining about it, Lunick sighed as he now tried to wipe his shoes clean, and wished he was on that scouting mission that his Ring Town's leader, Spenser, had assigned.

Spenser was a tough leader but fair. And he decided that Lunick needed something a bit more… simple. Lunick was a bit head strong and rash many times. Although Lunick's intentions were pure, his ideas lead to heavy consequences that lead to more disasters than before. Therefore, a simple mission was assigned to him this time so he wouldn't have the chance to mess it up and leave disastrous consequences. Lunick checked his white belt that was strapped loosely around his waist to make sure his equipment was still in place and decided to put back the manhole cover in place.

"Miiii!" A little voice called out from the sewer. Lunick immediately withdrew his hand from the cover and peered back down into the dark hole. He saw on the ladder was a little blue mouse Pokemon who's minus looking cheek were buzzing with anger.

"Sorry, Minun!" Lunick said apologetically. And he put his hand down so that Minun could climb up his shoulder. Minun gave a "Are you kidding me?" look at Lunick's slimy state but climbed up and immediately jumped to the ground to shake away the grime. Slung on its back was a small yellow bag that contained things that can be used in minor emergencies such as first aid kit and etc.

"I guess the first thing we need to do is take a bath," Lunick laughed as though their state was something to joke about. Minun, not getting the joke, gave a puzzled look but nodded all the same. "Come on, let's head back to the Fall's Ranger base," Lunick said as he walked through the street as though his entire look was a new fashion statement. There were many people around with a wrinkled nose but they didn't openly complain. After all, it was this ranger that helped them get their water system back.

He arrived back at the base (a small green circular building) and step through the glass door. "Hi Joel!" Lunick called out to the Fall's Ranger Leader, who looked up from the paperwork he was looking at with the receptionist. Joel was a serious blond hair man and didn't even blink through his square glasses from surprise when he saw Lunick's state. His uniform is completely different from Lunick's. Joel had a purple long sleeve uniform with matching pants and white dress shoes that were neat and clean.

"You finished the job?" Joel asked. Lunick nodded enthusiastically, flects of green slime flew everywhere. The receptionist behind the desk didn't know whether to cringe from Lunick's appearance or to laugh. Joel stared for a moment at Lunick before deciding not to ask anything about the mission.

"Get changed before heading back," Joel stated flatly before returning to his papers. Lunick gave a hearty salute before going to the ranger's commons on the second floor. As he expected, the room was empty, and he immediately went to the changing room to get himself cleaned up in one of the shower rooms. Minun washed itself with a small blue handkerchief it carried in the yellow bag and in the little sink that was used for small Pokemon.

Lunick finished his shower and put on a spare Ranger pants while trying to dry his hair with a towel. He couldn't really see the mirror or anywhere due to the heavy mist. He opened the bathroom door to let the steam escape when he noticed that there was someone sitting and reading a Ranger magazine on the couch. It was a girl, about the same age as Lunick, with blond curly hair and was wearing purple and white uniform which was in a similar style to Joel. She had on white pants and a jacket that was both purple and white. The girl's face had a nasty frown of disgust.

"Wear a shirt," the girl snarled and glared at him until Lunick hastily put on his ranger shirt. "What kind of ranger are you, going around half naked?"

"Hello, Aria," Lunick said flatly, though his ears were turning bright red. He hastily got out of the shower room while putting on his red jacket. Minun followed behind though a little bit far away since it too didn't like the girl.

Aria has been on Lunick's case ever since they first met. Aria scorned the rookie trainer. She had reason since Lunick didn't really show any skills at first, but now that he had moved up, Lunick was hoping for a bit more respect. Unfortunately, Aria still didn't have any to offer.

"What are you doing here anyways?" Aria asked rudely, "Did you come all the way here just to take a shower?" Lunick grimaced as he tried to slick his wet hair. He rather leave it wet than dry it and listen to Aria's annoying lectures.

"I was assigned a mission here – the waterworks were infested with Grimer… hence me coming up here to clean up before I go," Lunick muttered. He tried to leave but Aria wasn't done yet.

"You haven't improved a bit if you could get that dirty from dealing a couple of Grimer," Aria said in a tough voice as though to literally say "you are weak" in Lunick's face. That finally made the ranger snapped. He had enough of this looking down attitude.

"What are you doing here anyways?" Lunick demanded. "Bored since Joel didn't want to give a mission to someone like you?" Minun was startled at Lunick's fighting words. Lunick usually tried to avoid fighting with Aria because she was his senior, even though there was no age difference… and the fact that she was a girl.

"I'm taking a break," Aria retorted, her cheeks turning bright pink. "I've completed all of my missions successfully and I deserve one."

"Great," Lunick said, "Then keep on taking your break and leave your criticism elsewhere." This time Aria turned red in the face from anger, but Lunick stormed out before she could say anything else. During the elevator ride down, Minun hopped onto Lunick's shoulder and rubbed his cheek as though to cheer Lunick up.

"Sorry," Lunick muttered, "I shouldn't have lost my temper." He rubbed Minun's head, and soon the door of the elevator swung open. To Lunick's surprise, it was Joel. For some reason he looked grim… grimmer than usual.

"Something wrong?" Joel asked as though he could read Lunick's mind. _I could ask the same for you_, Lunick thought but didn't say it.

"Nothing… just lost my temper a second ago…" Lunick muttered and tried to force a grin as if to say it wasn't a big deal. Joel raised his eyebrow with suspicion but didn't say anything. He seemed to have something to say but decided not to…

"I was going to ask Aria, but since you're down here… Can you do me a favor?" Joel finally asked.

Lunick frowned. He already finished his mission, and he highly doubt he'll be needed since Aria was the 'better' Ranger. However, Lunick still nodded. He might as well. If Aria blabbed about Lunick's temper, things could get pretty bad. Might as well try and get on Joel's good side.

"A ship coming from Sinnoh is arriving into Fall's port in an hour or so, bringing several tourists and other people," Joel stated formally, "I want you to keep a look out as you know there are pickpockets and such." Even though Fiore is known for its peacefulness, petty crimes could still occur. It was the job of the police force but having a Ranger there would bring a bit more authority.

"All right sir," Lunick grinned. "You can count on me!" He saluted happily. This was a small mission but it would definitely take his mind of what Aria was saying.

"Mii!" Minun interrupted, waving its hands in the air in protest.

"Oh sorry, you can count on me **and** Minun!" Lunick said, laughing. Even Joel gave a somewhat grudging smile. With that, Lunick left the Ranger Base. Joel watched Lunick leave, and then took out his phone to speak into it.

"Yes, I'm still here… I'm sorry; I've just bumped into him and I… I didn't have the heart to tell him… I'm sorry… I sent him on a small mission, so he won't know now… but I'll get over to Ring Town right away. Don't worry, Spencer." With that, Joel left the building and whistled. Immediately, a Dodrio appeared right before him. He got on and immediately raced to Ring Town. Even though, he told Spencer not to worry, Joel couldn't help but feel worry as well.

Something bad happened and the worst part was that they don't know what. Joel hoped they could solve it or it'll bring people into panic, especially Lunick.

…

Lunick sat down on the port side and let his legs dangle out into the ocean. The ship hasn't arrived yet but it was soon to arrive. Minun sat on Lunick's head as it smell the salty breeze. There were many people walking by. Some were sailors, waiting, like Lunick, for the ship while others were waiting for the passengers to arrive.

"Remember Minun," Lunick grinned. "I came off of one of those ships when I became a Pokemon Ranger?" He remembered that first day when he got off that ship in his new but slightly large uniform. His leader, Spencer, came to pick him up and also taught him how to use his Capture Styler.

Lunick took his styler out of his belt and remembered that when Spencer first gave it to him. He used it first on Minun when there were rampage in the city, and immediately the two became friends. In those few months, he became good friends with all of his teammates and he couldn't ask for a better job. That's why Lunick is determined to do the right thing and bring peace to this region.

FOOMMM! Lunick looked up and noticed that a large, though small in the distance, was coming their way. Lunick could feel the excitement within him. These people were going to receive the best welcoming committee ever.

"HEYYYYY!" Lunick called out waving his hands in the air. Minun, too, raised its arms and waved as well. And so, the only two members of the welcoming committee gave the visitors a nice greeting. The ship blew its horn back in reply. It sliced through the water with ease as though a hot knife through butter before slowing down to a stop.

Sailors immediately started to grab ropes thrown from their fellow mates on the ship and tied them to pegs on the side. After thirty minutes, the ship was finally secured and a staircase was formed. Lunick watched as many people started to get off the boat. Quite of few were carrying their heavy luggages and Lunick decided to help out.

"You need any help," Lunick asked a little girl, around eight, who was carrying both her Teddiursa bear and a small luggage. The girl, however, didn't respond and stare at Lunick with amazement.

"You're a Pokemon Ranger!" She squealed as though she just won the lottery. Lunick grinned in pride. "Is it true that you don't capture wild Pokemon in Pokeballs?"

"Yeah," Lunick grinned and took out his Capture Styler to show to the amazed girl. "See this is a Capture Styler." It was red and looked like a large phone but inserted in it was a small top. "We use these to help ask wild Pokemon for help and after that, we release them back into the wild. Minun is the only partner that I keep with me." Minun hopped down onto Lunick's arm and allowed the little girl to pet it.

"Wow," the girl whispered in amazement. She looked like she would've said more, but her parents grabbed her arm, apologized for their daughter's rude staring, and left in a hurry. Lunick sighed as he placed his capture styler back into his pocket on his belt. He wished these people were a bit more interested in his job. But this was normal. Apparently, being a trainer was way better than being a ranger. Trainers have more recognition in all the other regions where trainers were more common than rangers.

Suddenly, Lunick was jostled by someone and almost fell to the ground. The person turned out to be some strange guy wearing a brown cloak with a hood and was wearing a blue trench coat underneath with black slack pants. It was strange because despite the warm weather, the guy didn't even look remotely hot in the heavy clothing he was wearing. Lunick couldn't really see his face but silver hair stuck out from within. The guy had nothing, but tightened his hold on a knapsack that was slung on his left shoulder. This was also strange, considering how everyone else has so much. He looked as though he only packed enough for one day.

"Opps, sorry," the guy muttered and quickly left to join the herd of crowd. Lunick followed with his eyes suspiciously at the guy until he was gone.

"That was strange," Lunick muttered and shrugged. Minun looked curiously at the hooded figure as well. "Well, nothing out of the ordinary. Let's go back to Ring Town and – Hey!" Lunick felt for his Capture Styler but realized that it wasn't in the belt. He looked down and sure enough, the styler was gone. Minun looked extremely worried and started to panic. Lunick thought it was strange. He showed it to that little kid, and he definitely remembered putting it back on his belt before that person… That's when he flashed back and remembered the moment when that strange guy bumped into him.

He was the one who stolen Lunick's styler! "Minun!" Lunick said, "Mission start! We need to find and get back my styler!" Minun immediately looked serious as the both of them charged down the street where they last saw the guy.

Who would've thought that the person supervising the place to make sure no thievery occurred would be the one to get pick pocketed?

…

In a deserted place where it was locked up with metal chains and walled up with bricks that made it difficult to climb over, there sat Wes. Of course, feeling that he'll need to hide a bit in case that guy found out, Wes decided that this was probably the best place to hide for now. Wes was surprised at the security of this place. He could've break into any of these homes without so much of a noise or hindrance.

_But now wasn't the time to think of that_, Wes thought as he pulled out the item from his first thievery crime in this region.

"So, this is called a Capture Styler," Wes muttered as he inspected that guy's equipment he had just 'borrowed' from. He probably needed to get some tools before he try and open it to see how it worked. Wes then reached into his pocket in his pants and pulled out the broken pieces of the top he had retrieved that night in the desert. There were quite a bit of differences but Wes could tell that there were basic similarities in the styles.

Everything had happen only a couple of days ago, yet Wes felt like it was a life time. He closed his eyes, leaned against the wall, and remembered finally falling unconscious in the desert and mysteriously surviving.

…

_Five days ago…_

Wes woke up and found himself staring at a dimly lit ceiling. He looked around and noticed that he was lying down onto of a bed. _How long have I been here? And where am I?_ Wes thought as he tried to get up into sitting position. He noticed that his whole chest and his head were bandaged. That's when he realized that something was wrong.

Wes looked at his arm, and to his amazement, it was healed… as though it never was broken before. He moved his arm and bent his elbow as though he couldn't believe what happened. Suddenly, there was a sliding sound on the right wall. Wes noticed that the wall was actually part of a bookshelf. A large man entered through the tiny secret passageway. Immediately, Wes realized where he was and who had taken care of him.

"Wes, are you okay?" the man asked, nervously, as though he was trying to be fatherly but not too fatherly at the same time. Despite his large appearance, he had a large heart and was a fair man. The man was strongly built and had a thick mustache and beard. His large hands could fit a watermelon and his short legs were not made for long distance but for quick pace.

"Duking," Wes replied with a small nod. He noticed that behind the large man were several young children from the town. "I see you're doing fine." Duking was the 'unofficial mayor' of Pyrite Town, where Wes was currently at. Because of the man's tough looks, Duking was able to bring some order in the area. Although Wes wasn't a typical good 'citizen,' Duking still considered Wes as a friend, and perhaps as a son, since he had helped Duking before. Of course, Duking's kind heart lead to his popularity with the kids.

"Kids," Duking gave a small cough of embarrassment and turned to the group of kids behind him. "Would you please leave for a minute?" The kids grumbled but nodded and left the two alone in the secret place. Without hesitation, Duking began to talk. "I found you just at the outskirt of town. I was shocked to see you there unconscious, but I took you in. You had quite a number of injuries but nothing broken…" Wes frowned as Duking continued to explain. Wes remembered clearly that his arm was broken and possibly his legs were as well. How did he manage to wake up as though he only took a light beating?

"Then I heard the news about your… death on the television about a day ago made by Cipher and I panicked," Duking continued to trail on his explanation, "Rui wasn't with you so something bad must have happened and I've had hidden you in here since then." Duking waited as though he wanted Wes to explain what was going on, but Wes merely stared into the darkness that the small light bulb hanging from the ceiling couldn't shine on.

"Was it the Cipher Team?" Duking asked quietly. Wes was still silent for almost ten minutes before he finally said something.

"In my hand, was I holding onto something?" Duking stared bewildered at Wes' question but opened a small drawer in the room near the bed and held the item out.

"You were holding onto this pretty tightly, so I figured it must've been important," Duking said. Wes didn't respond but took the broken top. He stared at it as though hoping for some explanation. Finally, Duking had to ask. "What is it?" Wes shook his head slowly in response.

"I don't know… Team Snagem had these and… they did things that we thought couldn't be possible." Wes explained what had happened before – how he was defenseless and couldn't fight back. Duking frowned and immediately, his tough self appeared.

"We need to gather information before we can act on this," Duking said, "I'll go and find some things out and you just stay here and –"

"No," Wes interrupted flatly, "I know where they're going." Duking gaped in surprise. "I need transportation to Fiore." Duking looked even more surprise than before.

"Fiore?" Duking repeated the place as though it was foreign (and it was). "That place is thousands of miles away from here. Why would Team Snagem go there?"

"That's what I want to find out," Wes said as he tried to struggle out of bed. He grimaced at the sharp pains he was feeling. Duking immediately pushed Wes back into bed.

"What?" Duking exclaimed firmly, "Forget it. You are in no condition to go. Look, whatever they're doing in Fiore is Fiore's problem now. We can't just barge in there since it is not our region."

"They've taken Rui," Wes said in a flat tone. Immediately, the room fell silent. Duking knew now that this was more of a personal problem now. Rui has a unique power, and if the other side had her, who knew what they were planning.

"So," Duking said finally, "Team Cipher is involved in this." Wes didn't respond. The likely hood was too great. Rui's ability wasn't something that the organization would skip. If they needed Rui for something, it was going to be something both big and bad. Duking didn't say anything and paced back and forth in the small room, though for him, it was more like walking in a circle.

"I'm going," Wes said firmly, "Whether you help me or not." Duking sighed and scratched his head in frustration. He grabbed a book from the library bookshelf and tossed it at Wes, who expertly caught it with his left hand.

"That is the book on Fiore's region. Never read it thoroughly but it should help," Duking muttered. Then he pointed his index finger at Wes. "I'll find the transportation you need to get there so rest and read that book until then. Better to get in there and blend in like a tourist since you have no experience in this region. I don't want to hear about you being dead again." With that Duking pushed against the wall, and it slid open, revealing the kids who fell to the ground, looking sheepishly, as though they were trying to ease drop the whole time.

"Get out! Get out!" Duking said, looking a bit embarrassed, and the kids ran away as though they were playing 'let's see if we can get away with it' kind of game. Duking quickly closed the door, leaving Wes alone in the dark room again. Personally, Wes would've settled the illegal method, but Duking helped him so much that it was probably best to agree to Duking's plan. It might take longer, but Wes knew that if he tried any funny business, Duking wouldn't hesitate to strap him with metal chains to the bed. With slight frustration, Wes opened the small book and began to read about it.

…

_Present time…_

"Hey you!" Wes looked up to the sky, and though he was shocked from the voice, he remained a calm composure. He saw an upside down face and noticed immediately that it was that same ranger from earlier. The guy had apparently climbed up the brick wall and was grabbing onto it tightly. How did that guy find him so quickly?

"Hey you!" Lunick demanded, "Give me back that styler!"

It was at that moment, though they didn't know at the time, that the two of their lives were now entwined into a dangerous mission with their lives at stake.

**Author's Notes**

Well, now we've met the two protagonists in the story. It's going to be an interesting chase after this. :D

Okay, I don't really remember Colosseum that much so if I made an error in names, places, or something. Let me know and I'll fix it. The same can be said for Ranger.

For those who don't know, I always thank my reviewers here. So let's get started!

…

**littlmidget123**

**Jarkes**

**Trutown**

**Crownofthorns**

**Zaphrix-DerKonenigDerFinsternis**

**chaison**

**Ketchum Kid** (hey thanks for the review. :D)

**Rinku588**

**RWT**

…

Okay, that's it from me.

Hopefully, I'll see you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	3. The Chase

**Disclaimer: As you can see, if I own Pokemon, the world will become unbalance and be destroyed, leaving no one to update this story.  
**

Hey guys! Another update! Lots of action and interaction between characters.

Of course, new characters are introduced. And I have important news regarding updates that I'll explain in the Author's Notes.

Enjoy!

**Chapter 2:**

Now, in Wes' life, he was taught to the art of stealing – from simple pick pocketing to elaborate house breaking. However, right now, Wes did the thing he was first taught to do in any situation when he got caught or after doing something bad – run.

Wes distracted the ranger by throwing his cloak at him, and then he charged to the opposite wall and, to Lunick's amazement, jumped over it. Wes didn't even give a second glance but simply smirked as he put on his silver glasses.

"HEY!" Lunick called out; throwing the cloak aside, as he, too, hop over the wall. He jumped down on the spot where the guy was just sitting and chased after the perpetrator. Then he climbed over the opposite wall to see the thief running down the alley. "Don't you dare run away! Give me back my Styler!"

_Like I'm going to listen to you_, Wes thought as he ran down the empty alley and found himself facing what appeared to be the market area. It was large circular space with a water fountain in the middle. There were sidewalks that pass by flower shops, open food markets, and even small gift shops. There were a lot of people here, but Wes didn't take this as an obstacle. He had experience in dealing with large crowds, and this also meant a higher chance of losing his pursuer. He charged through, dodging very quickly through people. Wes' light and thin stature made it easy for him to move, twist, and turn without causing havoc except a large rush of wind. Behind him, he could hear the people screaming at the strange blue blur that just passed them. Wes had no idea where to run, but he figured that sooner or later, he'll manage to lose the guy.

"GET BACK HERE!" Lunick called from far away, running like a maniac. On Lunick's shoulder, Minun's cheeks buzzed angrily. It was good at… stopping opponents, but with this many people, casualties could be heavy. Lunick was having a harder time to get through the multitude. His eyes could barely make out that blue trench coat from the throngs of people. "Out of the way, ranger on a mission!" Unfortunately, this didn't do except cause more people to congregate to see what the noise was all about.

At this rate, Lunick will lose that guy, and he highly doubt he'll be able to find him again. There has got to be a way to move around faster… Lunick suddenly noticed the stores' canopies. They give shade to bystanders walking on the sidewalk. No one was on those things and they led to where that thief was… Lunick immediately jumped on a couple of large vegetable crates and climbed up on top of a canopy over a fruit market.

"Hey!" The manager cried from below. He shook his fat fist in anger. "Get off!"

"Sorry!" Lunick called, saluting in apology, and immediately charged to frog jump on to the next store's canopy. "Sorry! Sorry! So Sorry!" He repeated this every time he landed on someone's top He was moving faster now. He charged and jumped above the whole traffic. There were now a whole bunch of people staring and whispering in amusement at Lunick's stunts. Lucky for Lunick, there was a large truck ahead, causing the pickpocket to stop and sidestepped. Just a couple of more hops…

Wes groaned a bit as he clutched his ribs. His injuries were still healing, and it was getting tougher to play this charade. People were starting to realize what was going on and it was getting harder to move. He suddenly heard loud cheering in the back and some surprise gasps. He looked to his side and noticed that the young ranger running and jumping over canopies right next to him. The little blue mouse Pokemon was buzzing electricity from its cheek. Lunick, contrasting to Wes, was built for strength and endurance. Lunick's muscles were thick both on his arms and legs. He was barely out of breath when he saw that Wes noticed him.

"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY!" To Wes' shock, the guy jumped off and into the air, planning to land on top of Wes. That was a pretty brave and also pretty stupid move. "GAHHH – AHHHHH!" Lunick had changed his choice of word in midair when he noticed what the thief has counterattacked. Wes, who noticed garbage cans next to him that were waiting to be picked up, kicked and pushed the cans into the air so that Lunick was guarantee to crash into them.

BAM! PLAT! SLAM! BOOM! MIII! AHHH! Lunick and the cans crashed and rolled around. Soon the garbage spewed everywhere from the open cans and landed on Lunick and Minun, both who had just taken clean bath. Immediately, laughter filled the entire place at the sight. Turning red in the face, Lunick was just pulling off a banana peel from his head when he noticed the guy rushing off.

"COME BACK HERE!" But it was too late.

…

Wes didn't stop until he reached to a less deserted place in the northwest of this city. Here there were residential houses that had white bricks, red roofs, and flowers growing from the window sills. It was pretty quiet over here compare to the other part of town.

Wes, adrenaline now gone, was now feeling slightly guilty for what he had done. Still, that guy put up quite a bit of a fight. Wes took out the Capture Styler and looked at it again. Cautiously, he took the Fiore Region Guidebook that Duking gave him from his sack. He skipped everything until he came to the page he had earmarked – 'The History of Rangers.' Wes skimmed through until he reached the page where it showed an old man with a thin white mustache that curled up and a small beard. His white eyebrows were very thick and long, and his head, with white long hair that went to his neck, had a fancy purple top hat. The man was wearing a long white coat with pockets under a purple plump suit. To top this off, he was holding a brown cane and a briefcase. On the very bottom of the page, Wes read the name of this name – Professor Hasting, The Ranger Union's Chief of Technology.

According to the book, Hasting created the styler which was shown on the next page. The picture was enlarged and colored in the same way as the styler Wes had swiped. Unfortunately, there wasn't really anything else about the styler that was described in detail, but that problem can be solved. Wes observed the map on one of the first pages that showed the map of Fall City. He observed the area until he noticed one building that seemed to contrast greatly from the other white and colorful houses. It was a large gray square building with black windows. The place looked more like a warehouse. Wes read next to the door, a sign that said – Professor Hasting's lab. Perfect. The man that Wes wanted to see.

Like all normal spies, Wes didn't use the front door; he backtracked to the other side of the building. He noticed that there was a small window that was open. He peered in and saw complete darkness. Wes' dexterity allowed him to fit through the window and into what appeared to be a large dark storage area. He coughed slightly at the dust that settled everywhere. Someone needed to clean up.

Wes took off his shades and looked for an exit. He suddenly noticed a bit of light coming from what appeared to be a door on the right side that had stairs leading up to it, but just before he could make a move, Wes heard voices.

"Thanks Aria for coming here and help cleaning up. I have so much trouble trying to organize everything," a young female voice, sound as though the person was thirty years old, said.

"No problem," the other voice said, sounding much younger and a bit haughty. "I know how the professor is. He's always out and just threw things everywhere." Wes flinched and looked around. He noticed a stack of discarded paper boxes lying in a corner and managed to jump behind them just in time as the lock turned and the door clicked open.

"Where are the lights…?" the assistant muttered and felt the wall until there was a soft click. Wes saw that there was a small light bulb shining faintly in the room.

Not wanting to take any chances, Wes crouched as low as possible and listened only to the voices. There were the sound of shuffling of feet and books, flapping noises of paper, and loud booms from heavy documents dropping onto the ground.

"I keep asking for the professor to help, but he always tried to find an excuse and run off," the older female said and then said to herself, "Hmm, these papers are what Hasting wants."

"Well, it's not like he wants to clean up," the girl, Aria, said as she filed the books back on the shelf in alphabetical order. The two girls kept talking and talking and talking… Normally, a person would be impatient in this situation but not Wes. Right now, he was thinking of what to do.

Judging by what this Aria girl had said, Professor Hasting wasn't here or else that assistant would've forced that professor to clean up with her. But he still come back every once in a while so the best thing to do is to leave and come back later.

"Aria, can you get those boxes over there so we can fill it up with these papers?" Wes' heartbeat went ten times faster. He was hiding behind the boxes that were…

"Sure thing," Aria said. Wes could hear the footsteps come closer and closer. Well, there was nothing to do but let it all blow over. He saw his hiding spot being removed and came face to face with a girl about the same age as him. She had long curly blond hair and wearing purple sleeve and white jacket along with white pants. Her brown fingerless gloved hands were holding tightly onto one of the box. Her gray eyes widened with shock… then with horror.

"EEEEKKKKK! PERVERT!" Aria yelled and she tried to slam the boxes right on top of Wes who was already on the move.

_Guess this is what happens when you break into a house,_ Wes thought as he tried to move to the door. There was no point in hanging around when you get caught.

"What's going on here?" another voice cried. Wes stared in amazement at an older gentleman coming through the door. He was the same one from the picture in Wes' book. White beard, purple suit underneath a white lab coat and holding a hat, cane, and a briefcase – Professor…

"Professor Hasting!" The young assistant, who has long brown wavy hair and a yellow uniform, cried out with amazement as though she couldn't believe this. "What are you doing here? Don't you have a meeting?" But before the professor could explain, he found himself grabbed by the throat and pushed out of the door and slammed against the wall. Hasting sputtered for air and found himself face to face with a young spiky white hair man wearing a blue trench coat and a strange device on his left arm. His black gloves squeezed slightly tighter around Hasting's throat. The boy's amber reddish eyes glowered with a strange anger yet a hint of doubt within.

"Professor Hasting!" the assistant shrieked. Aria, though shaking a bit, held up her Ranger badge that was small and had golden 'FR' on the front.

"Pervert!" Aria yelled, "By the order of Fall Ranger, I command you to let go of the professor and turn yourself in to the police!" Hasting saw the boy turned his head and whatever facial expression the boy gave to Aria, caused the girl to stumble back in fear. Then slowly, the boy turned back to face Hasting. The boy took something from his pocket and held it high enough for the bewildered Hasting to see.

"You and I have a lot to discuss."

…

"That was humiliating," Lunick muttered as he dumped another bucket of water all over his head and shook his head to let the drop of water on his head to fall to the dirt ground. After that fiasco earlier, a kind lady allowed Lunick to clean up in one of the shop's courtyard sinks. Minun removed an eaten apple core from its bag and shook itself clean as Lunick dumped water all over it from a pail. "What in the world will we tell Spencer…?" Lunick thought and Minun, with the same expression, thought as well. How the Ring Town's ranger leader would would react when he heard that Lunick lost his Capture Styler…

Soon the atmosphere turned dismal.

"AHHH!" Lunick said, "We're going to get killed!" Lunick said as he clutched his head at the sheer thought of think of what Spencer's face and the awaited torture would look like. Minun ran around in circle. The little mouse Pokemon was also terrified. "Death awaits us when we go back."

"MIIIIII!" Minun cried as it still continued to run in a circle.

"Minun, it was nice knowing you!" Lunick cried as it hugged Minun and both of them started bawling tears.

"What the heck is going on?" the lady, who owned the store, muttered, as she watched from inside the store, the two cry. There was a loud slam of a door and someone rushed past the lady and to the courtyard where the ranger and his Minun was.

"Lunick!" Lunick looked up to see a brown hair lady with yellow attire. He immediately recognized her.

"You're Professor Hasting's assistant!" Lunick cried, "How did you find me?"

Ignoring the question, the assistant dived in to the situation. "You need to hurry! Aria went to get help as well but someone attacked the professor!"

"What?" Lunick gaped in shock, "the professor… Wait, what?"

"Just hurry!" With that Minun jumped on Lunick's shoulder, and the boy ran all the way to the professor's research lab, leaving the assistant far behind. Lunick's endurance and speed were still good after all that happened to him.

Professor Hasting was a really good friend of Lunick's. Escorting the famous man was one of Lunick's first jobs as ranger. However, Hasting was a bit… well, hasty. He tended to look things rashly and ignore the consequences. Perhaps that's why people say that Lunick was a lot like a younger version of Hasting. Ignoring passersby, Lunick finally reached the entrance and opened the door to see the professor standing in front of someone Lunick had just met less than an hour ago.

"YOU!"

…

Wes didn't have time to react when the ranger's Pokemon sent out an electric blast at him. Immediately, Wes was shocked by blue electricity, and he couldn't move. The ranger came forward and searched in Wes' coat. Not finding what he wanted, Lunick grabbed Wes by the collar. Wes could smell the disgusting trash still from the incident before. "Where is my Caputure Styler?"

"Right here." Lunick turned around and to his shock, saw Professor Hasting holding Lunick's Capture Styler. Lunick stared at the styler then back at Wes; then he pointed to the styler and back at Wes as though trying to find the connection but wasn't seeing it. Hasting coughed in embarrassment but gave the item to the bewildered Lunick, who let go of Wes to take back the styler. Minun was looking back and forth, surprised as well.

"Wes here told me he came from a region called Orre and wanted to ask me something serious that appeared to be related with what I work with." Lunick looked at the thief, called Wes, who was now able to move and patted his coat as though Lunick had ruined it.

"Professor," Lunick finally sputtered and pointed at Wes, "This guy stole my styler! He even attacked you!" Hasting looked slightly embarrassed, and Wes, who looked slightly insulted for being pointed at, intervened.

"I attacked the professor because I figured that was the only way I could talk to him after being… found. When those girls left, I gave the old man here the benefit of the doubt and explained to him the problems."

"What problems?" Lunick demanded, angry that Wes wasn't giving Hasting any respect, "And his name is Professor Hasting!" Wes ignored Lunick and held out what appeared to be a broken styler, except there was something different about it. Hasting immediately grabbed it and stared at it with wonder.

"This… is a Capture Styler!" Professor Hasting gasped and then muttered to himself, "the style is different but the basic foundation is the same and… what's this…?" Hasting continued to move the broken pieces around like a child trying to fit the puzzle pieces back together. His face was all giddy with excitement. Lunick continued to glower at Wes who didn't seem to find the glare bothersome.

"That thing you call styler," Wes said, trying to get Hasting focused, "was what attacked me and allowed Snagem to kidnap a friend of mine." Lunick's face turned from hatred to surprise. Kidnap? Hasting's face changed into concern as well.

"And you think that this thing has something to do with me? Impossible," Hasting said, shaking his head as though the idea was ridiculous, "The basic foundation of this styler is the same as my creation, but everything else is… different. Stylers aren't supposed to attack people anyways. Who is this Snagem? And why was your friend kidnap?" Wes didn't answered frowned and put his hand to his lips as though contemplating the information. Finally, deciding he had no choice, Wes then took out from his bag, a strange gray electronic device that popped open to reveal many different green windows that display what appeared to be Wes' ID.

"This is my PDA. Give me your email and notify me if you can give any information on that thing I just gave you," Wes said, "I'll come back later and explain in more detail of what happened in Orre." Lunick stared surprise at the strange device as well as Hasting who put in his information. Wes then closed the device back to its gray rectangle form and placed it back into his bag before turning out to the door.

"WAIT!" Lunick called out and grabbed Wes by the arm. "Where do you think you're going? You're under arrest for stealing and for injuring someone." Wes stared back at Lunick who couldn't tell what Wes was thinking. After a long painful silence, Wes pushed Lunick away and continued to the door. "Hold on a minute!"

"Professor!" Wes was suddenly bumped into by a strange girl. He then realized it was that Aria from earlier. She looked terrified but not because she encountered Wes again. "Professor," Aria gasped. Everything that had happened ago seemed to be erased from Aria's memory and a new terror was in place. She didn't even seem to notice Lunick or Minun. "Come to the ranger base quick!"

"Why?" Professor Hasting asked urgently, "What happened?"

"It's Joel," Aria said, this time tears coming out of her eyes, "Something happened to him."

…

Lunick, Wes, and Professor Hasting found Fall City's ranger leader, Joel. completely unconscious on one of the hospital beds that the ranger base provided. Joel's purple uniform was ripped pretty bad and his arms, head and legs were bandaged. His glasses, broken in half, were placed next to the small dresser. Two of Aria's ranger classmates, Lind and Keith, were looking grim as they continued to stand by the bedside. The assistant, from Hasting's office, was bawling her tears out and looked up with amazement at Hasting.

"Professor," the assistant choked, "I… I…" She couldn't say anymore and continued to cry.

"What happened?" Hasting asked urgently as the reception lady of the base tried to calm the assistant down.

"We, me and Keith," Lind, a blond hair kid, said, "were at the Krokka Tunnel and were coming back when we found Joel attacked just outside the city. Dodiro was… gone… as though it disappeared…"

"Krokka Tunnel…" Wes muttered in confusion as everyone watched Lind shamelessly bawling. He took his book out and looked for a map. It's the cave tunnel that connects Ring Town and Fall City. It was made apparently by Dugtrio thanks to Rangers' efforts.

_Wait a minute_, Wes looked up as though he just realized something. Attacked? Pokemon disappearance?

"We…" Keith continued to Hasting though the boy, too, looked chocked up, "We brought him back and noticed your assistant. She found Aria who went to get you…"

Lunick stood wordlessly at the injured and unconscious Joel, who, it felt like a lifetime ago, just gave him a mission. Before he could say anything, Lunick saw Wes brush past him and look straight at the two rangers.

"Was there anything there that seemed out of place?" Wes demanded. Lind and Keith looked shocked at this strange question from an unknown guy. "Was there?"

"Y… yeah," Keith gulped and took some red headphones out of his pocket. "I found this…" Wes snatched them from the ranger's hand and took one good look at it,

"Where is Krokka Tunnel?" Wes demanded.

"Just west of here," Keith said, now scared, "But… why?" Wes didn't say anything and headed out.

"Hold on!" Lunick called out, following Wes. "What are you doing?" Wes didn't answer and continued to walk in the direction of Krokka Tunnel. "Stop!" Lunick this time ran straight ahead and blocked Wes' path. "You need to start explaining! Everyone is confused but you seemed to be the only one who has a clue as to what is going on." Wes gazed back at the angry and frustrated Lunick.

"Lunick!" Hasting called out and Lunick and Wes turned to see Hasting, with extraordinary speed, coming after them. "Phone! It's Spencer! He… he needs to talk to you!"

"Professor? What…?" Lunick said, looking puzzled. Wes observed the situation and didn't move until Hasting came face to face with Lunick.

"Spencer had just been recently informed," Hasting gasped through breaths of air, "and he said that Joel's injury must somehow connect to what was going on."

"What? What was going on?" Lunick repeated, confused. Professor Hasting paused as though he too didn't know what was really going on.

"Just come inside. Spencer will explain," Professor Hasting said and looked at Wes too, "I think you should come as well." Wes glared back as though he was questioning this Spencer's interruption but grudgingly followed as well. Lunick quickened his pace so that he was next to Professor Hasting, leaving Wes behind by himself. Lunick still didn't trust this strange thief guy and he highly doubt he ever will.

**Author's Notes**

Insert laughter here. We all know the irony in Lunick's statement.

Well, we're finally getting somewhere.

Now for everyone here. If you don't know already (I posted this up in all of my other stories) I'll tell you now. I'm going to be on vacation and won't be back until early July. Do not expect updates anytime soon after this.

Okay, let's thank my reviewers.

…

**Trutown**

**Jarkes**

**littlmiget123**

**RWT**

**Rinku588**

**Ketchum Kid** (yuck. Grimer is one of the worse to deal with. I don't know how the people in the game can take it. Thanks for reviewing.)

**Crownofthorns**

…

That's it from me.

Please reviewing and I'll look forward to hear from you when I get back.

**-JapanDreamer**


	4. Escape and Rescue

**Disclaimer: Any Pokemon mentioned here are not owned by this author. Then again, all 500+ Pokemon aren't own by this author either…**

Hey guys, I'm back and guess what? Since you guys all waited patiently, I wrote the longest chapter that I've ever written in my entire fanfic career! Yay me!

Enjoy the chapter!

**Chapter 3:**

Professor Hasting led the two back into the base and into a small room that automatically locked behind them. It was a private room that had only a small screen on the wall along with several buttons with the numbers from zero to nine that were used in order to place a call. The screen was now brightly lit with someone's face on it.

"Spenser," Professor Hasting puffed out when he saw the screen where Spenser was waiting. "I have Lunick here as well." Lunick hurried up and immediately knew something was wrong with his leader who was at Ring Town.

In front of the screen, one could tell that he man in his late twenties had sea green long wild hair that was held by a headband going around his head and fingerless black gloves on his hands which were clenched and slammed against the desk. He wore the same clothing as Lunick – a red short jacket with a gray jumpsuit that was white at the top part and collared up. Although the same screen didn't show it, the man had cargo like pockets running down the side of his legs and a white belt tied around his waist which held his Capture Styler that was in a white case. The man's gray eyes glared through the screen and straight at Lunick, who almost recoiled at the sight.

Spenser was the best Pokemon Capturer around here. He was tough like Joel except Joel was more to the book while Spenser was the adventure type. Both even had a fierce rivalry competition that started when they were young. Of course, the other Ranger leaders from the other towns were tough too, but Spenser was probably the most well known and popular one, even though he was a bit hot headed.

"Lunick," Spenser said in a furious tone that Lunick was too familiar with, "I've just heard from Hasting that you had your Capture Styler stolen! Can you explain to me why?" Lunick and Minun both gave an 'Oh, crap' look and knew they were going to be punished. Realizing the only way Spenser could've known about this incident, Lunick gave a glare at Professor Hasting, who immediately looked flustered and tried to look away as he straightened his tie.

"I'm sorry Spenser," Lunick said nervously. He too had the same expression like Hasting on his face. "At least I got it back." Spenser looked as though he was about to explode, but to Lunick's surprise, his comment caused Spenser clutched his hand to his face as though he was trying to hold back angry tears. Lunick and Minun were shocked. Hasting's eyes were wide open. The news were more grave than he thought.

"Darn it, if something happened to you too, then..."

"What?" Lunick said urgently, "What happened?" Spenser took a deep breath before he looked straight at Lunick.

"Solana and Murph were on that scouting mission," Spenser said, "And we think Solana is kidnapped."

"What?" Lunick yelled so loud that Minun almost flinched from fear, "WHAT HAPPENED?"

"Spenser," Hasting said in an urgent voice, "Are you sure that's what happened?"

"I don't know," Spenser said as though this was killing him, "I somehow made contact with Murph before the connection broke, and apparently, there was a strange factory and when she went to investigate while Murph stood guard…"

Lunick wasn't listening anymore. His head was going all swirly and his brain seemed to be filled with nothingness. He had just seen Murph earlier – bright, cheerful, and dim as always. Solana too… That stupid turquoise hair girl with that stupid sense of superiority…

How could this happen?

…

_About seven hours ago…_

Lunick yawned as he waited in the elevator as it went down to take him to the first floor of the Ring's Ranger headquarters. His black hair was still rumpled from last night and his Ranger outfit was in disarray. Minun was still sleeping on Lunick's shoulder. Both of them were having such good dreams just thirty minutes ago when they were abruptly awakened by a wakeup call that nobody used except one person and Lunick knew who the stupid person was. He heard the loud 'ding!' and walked out of the door to find himself face to face with a young Ranger, about the same age as him, who had a red Plusle riding on her shoulder.

She had long turquoise hair that was held in a thick ponytail that stood straight up. Her hair parted into two bangs and she had on a red headband that was worn in the same way as Lunick. She had on the same kind of short red jacket with a yellow collar and a jumpsuit as well. The only difference was that the jumpsuit was more sliming and showed the curves of her waist. The bottom pants part only went down to her thighs and she wore long black socks that went above her knees. The girl had red athletic boots that matched the color of her uniform. Her ruby eyes narrowed and her hands with fingerless black gloves were on her waist as though she was thoroughly irritated.

"About time!" Solana said frustrated, "I've been up for more than two hours and you don't even look awake!" She fingered with her Styler that was hung on her waist by a white belt and looked even more frustrated when Lunick replied with another yawn. "And you're uniform is so messy." She immediately grabbed Lunick's jacket and tried to straightened it as well has the front of his rumpled uniform. Pluse did the same and tried to pat Minun's rumpled hair.

"Hey, hey!" Lunick said, now wide awake, "Stop it, I can do it myself!" He pushed back Solana and tried to fix his jacket without looking too embarrassed. Minun tried to push back as well. Luckily at that moment, the elevator opened again, revealing a very chubby and short ranger with short light brown messy hair stretching his arms into the air. His similar uniform bulged around his arms, stomach, and legs. His small eyes were even smaller than usual due to his sleepy state. He, too, yawned like Lunick. Crawling slowly behind Murph was his Pokemon partner, Slowpoke.

"Morning," Murph said, yawning again. "What's up?"

"Nothing much," Solana said, giving a sly glare at Lunick, "This sleepy head is late again for our meeting… Again."

_If I'm late, then what is Murph?_ Lunick thought, looking fairly annoyed. _Why does she always yell at me and not Murph? I know Murph is impossible to wake up but seriously…_

"Anyways," Solana said as she looked at the round clock hung up on the wall, "Spenser is out today for some capture training and he gave me the list of jobs that he wants us to do?" Solana took a white piece of paper out of her pocket.

"What?" Lunick gaped as he grabbed the paper, "Why did he give them to you?" He checked the paper for forgery but sure enough the words were in Spenser's handwriting.

"Because I'm more responsible! And give that back to me!" Solana snatched the paper away and cleared her throat like an important person. Lunick acted as though Solana had just gave him a papercut but Solana ignored him. "Now first, I need to tell you guys the jobs you need to do around the town after the mission because you guys are bound to leave before I tell you. Lunick, the light bulbs upstairs need to be changed; Murph, the floor needs to be mopped and…"

"Why does she have to act like she is the boss of us?" Lunick whispered to Murph.

"Well she kind of is," Murph said, not looking as annoyed as Lunick. "I mean she has more sense of leadership and Spenser trusts her more. Plus, she has been here longer than you." Lunick looked thoroughly put out at the lack of support from his friend and was now in a pretty bad mood as he looked out the window.

The room was brightly cleaned up and the tile floor was sparkling. The sun was shining and the day was warm. The lady who worked behind the counter was not here yet either. Lunick hated when Solana was in charge for the day and her stupid crack of dawn pep talk. She was such a dictator. At least Spenser was a bit more lax at wake up call.

"Besides," Murph continued happily, "you like her don't you?" Lunick's mind immediately crashed down to reality.

"WHAT? DON'T BE STUPID! WHO WOULD LIKE HER?"

"Who would like who?" Solana asked and Lunick realized that he yelled just a little bit louder than he wanted to. Solana's eyes twitched with annoyance since the two had obviously been absorbed in their own conversation and didn't listen to her. Murph looked really embarrassed and laughed nervously as Lunick's red face that was turning even redder.

"Oh um…" Lunick got all flustered up and discomfited, "no one…"He said the last part really softly. Solana looked irritated but continued on. Lunick gave Murph an evil glare which Murph returned with a flustered and scared look as he mouthed the word 'Sorry'.

"Anyways," Solana said, finishing her speech, "Murph and I will go on that scouting mission while Lunick will help out at Fall City."

"Wait a minute," Lunick interrupted, shocked at the different type of mission he got than he usually did, "Why do I have to go to Fall City? Shouldn't Murph go?"

"I agree Lunick on this one," Murph said, looking a little shocked at this decision, "With an authority around, at least I won't mess up too bad. Plus, I'm not that good for scouting missions."

"Murph, you keep saying that and you'll never be. Besides Joel needed help and Spenser said Lunick was the perfect one for the job," Solana said as she put the paper back into her pocket.

"What?" Lunick demanded angrily, "What does that mean?"

"Remember last week," Solana said looking at Lunick, "That fire you started when trying to capture that rampaging Combusken just up ahead of here?"

"Oh yeah," Lunick said, grinning sheepishly as he remembered everybody screaming as the flying fire kung fu chicken came near them, "At least I captured it."

"After having it almost burning down the entire field and the town I might add," Murph said as though he was trying to help out in the conversation.

"Shut up Murph."

"You were too rash," Solana said, ignoring Lunick's comment, "And to Spenser, that's your weakness. With Joel there, at least he can help you keep yourself under control."

"I'm not rash," Lunick protested, "I'm serious about my work and I get it down no matter what."

"One day, that's going to come back and hurt you," Solana said quietly.

"What?" Lunick asked. Solana shook her head and turned to Murph.

"Come on Murph," Solana said, "Let's hurry up and get this mission done. Lunick hurry up and get ready to go to Fall City. It'll take you a while to get there." Lunick groaned at the fact that his question wasn't answered and muttered unhappily as he walked out of the room.

"Lunick," Solana said, surprised, "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, I am," Lunick said, "I don't need to waste time preparing like you do."

"With that attitude of yours, you'll never find a girl," Solana said, sticking out her tongue (one of her few childish behaviors she still had). Luckily, she didn't see Lunick's bright red ears as she consulted the list she created for her mission. "Whatever, there is that Krokka Tunnel you need to go through before arriving at Fall City. There are a lot of wild Pokemon out there so stay safe and don't do anything stupid."

"You sound like my mother," Lunick muttered, "At this rate; you'll never find a guy."

"Just get out of here!" Solana said, sounding flustered. Lunick didn't need to hear twice and turn to walk out of the room.

"Lunick," Muph said, trying to brighten Lunick's mood before the unhappy guy left, "after we're done, we can go out and get something to eat." Lunick shrugged and didn't look back. However, he gave a wave with his hand to know that he heard.

"Sure Murph, I'll see you later then."

…

Wes stared from behind and watched this dramatic soap opera played in front of his eyes. As far as he was concerned, this news had nothing to do with him. Nevertheless, he couldn't help but notice that black hair Ranger looking shocked and in despair.

"Spenser, what was this mission they went on? Are you sure Murph managed to escape?" the professor asked. Wes was getting fed up now. He was about to leave when he heard something Spenser said.

"The mission I gave them was to investigate the forest. I heard some travelers saying that there were strange noises coming from there," the guy said who was trying to talk calmly and clearly. "Apparently, something far worse than we thought was there and Solana couldn't come back. Murph said something about creating a diversion for him to escape and I think rescuing someone by the name of Rui…" Spenser said that last part as though he was confused. But he didn't have time to question because he suddenly found himself face to face an unfamiliar face of a white hair kid.

"Did you say 'Rui'?" the kid demanded. Spenser was taken aback by the stranger. "Did this Murph kid say that he rescued 'Rui'?" The kid's red eyes seemed to glow strangely as though they were burning with fire.

"Spenser," Hasting said quickly before more confusion settled in, "This is Wes from Orre. He seems to have information about something strange going around here."

"Orre?" Spenser said suspiciously, "Kind of far away from here aren't you?" Wes didn't say anything but continued to glower at Spenser for an answer.

"Spenser!" Lunick interrupted, "I need to save my friends! Please, give me a mission!"

"Calm down, Lunick," Hasting said before addressing to Spenser, "Spenser, what do you want us to do?"

"I'm going back to the forest to find Murph and Solana. I was going to ask Joel to come with me but…" Spenser paused for a moment before continuing, "Meanwhile, I want Lunick to remain in Fall City's base."

"What?" Lunick said, "My friends are in danger! I need to-!"

"No," Spenser stated flatly, "You need to stay. I cannot have you on this mission when so much is at stake."

"My friends are in danger! Solana is in danger! Do you think I can just sit back when I could do something? I'm a Ranger! I'm Ring Town's Ranger! Are you telling me that I'm not adept enough to help?" Lunick was yelling so loud and pounding his fist against the wall that the room vibrated and echoed. His eyes were filled with pure anger.

"Lunick," Spenser said in a very dangerous tone, "your orders from YOUR leader are to stay in Fall City until I say otherwise. I don't want you with me in a situation like this." The words stunned Lunick and he fell silent and for a minute the whole room was. "Professor, I want you to call the Cameron and Elita as well and explain the situation."

"I understand," Professor Hasting said gravely.

"And I want to speak to Wes," Spenser said as well. Wes looked surprised but came up to the screen. "Your friend, Rui, why is she here? And what brings you here as well?"

"I'm sorry, sir," Wes said immediately as though he was use to being questioned, "I can't disclose that information until I'm sure. I would be able to explain if I come with you." The two stared at each other for a long time before...

"I'm sorry," Spenser said, "You are not a native to this region and I can't have a foreigner tagging along on a mission." Wes didn't say anything back and simply nodded, but Spenser had a feeling that Wes wasn't happy. "I have to go now. Hasting, remember to tell Cameron and Elita." With that, the screen blinked and turned blank, leaving the three all alone in the dark.

"Lunick," the professor said, trying to break the uneasy silence, "Spenser was just trying to…" Hasting faltered as he watched Lunick hurried out. The old man couldn't bring himself to speak any more encouraging words. Wes was silent as well, but not for the same reason. His eyes were scrunched together. He was thinking of a plan.

…

Lunick pounded against the wall on the outside of the Ranger base. The bones in his hands were screaming with pain but he didn't stop, not until he ran out of energy and fell to the ground, panting. The wall was pretty dented and there was a dark scuff mark where Lunick's fist contacted. The sun was setting now, casting a reddish glow to the area. There weren't a lot of people out and none seemed to have noticed Lunick. Everyone seemed to be in a cheerful mood, not knowing the awful news of Joel or Ring Town's disaster. The wonderful atmosphere seemed to mock Lunick. Minun was so concern at its friend and tried to comfort Lunick in any means possible. Lunick thought deeply. Spenser's words seemed to be floating around his head. Although it was breaking the rules, Lunick didn't care. He was going to go save his friends no matter what.

"Are you just going to sit here and mope?" Lunick looked up to see Wes staring down.

"What do you want?" Lunick demanded, feeling embarrassed of looking pathetic at the moment. Wes scratched his head for a moment as though he was trying to figure out what to say without sounding too tactless.

"I'm sorry about your friends, and I know your leader told you to stay here but," Wes started, "I need you to help me find my friend."

"What?" Lunick said, getting up and standing face to face with Wes, "Why would you need my help?" Wes rolled his eyes as though the question was stupid.

"Like your leader, Spenser, said, I'm a foreigner around here, so me getting around here would be very difficult unless I have some help from someone who lived here and worked around the city – like rangers."

"Spenser said that you have to stay put," Lunick retorted. Wes raised his eyes at Lunick's reply as though the remark surprised him.

"So? Spenser is not someone who can just order me around."

"What do you always just run around and not follow rules?" Lunick said. "Oh wait a minute, what am I saying; you easily stole my Styler earlier. Maybe that's why you're okay with breaking the law so easily. You're probably some criminal in Orre and decided to run away here to escape prison." Wes' red eyes flashed dangerously, but didn't reply except with a scowl on his face.

"There is no way I'm going to be hanging around with a criminal like you," Lunick finished flatly. Minun nodded as well and puffed its chest defiantly.

"Lucky for you, I don't want to hang around with a stuck up person who tries to act like a hero," Wes said, his tone remarkably calm, "But I need your help to find my friend. I don't trust the other rangers here and Hasting obviously can't show the way."

"What? _Trust?_" Lunick repeated.

"None of the rangers will be willing to disobey an order for someone like me. As far as I know, they probably have already labeled me as a criminal… like you did."

"And what makes you think I will be the one who'll help?" Wes stared directly into Lunick's eyes as though he could read Lunick's mind.

"Earlier, you were obviously distressed to save your friends. Someone like you is not going to just wait here. Besides, you are going to disobey orders and leave tonight right?" Lunick flinched and looked the other way.

"Wh-what are you-?"

"You are too predictable," Wes said. "It's written all over your face. Since we're both thinking about sneaking out, why not work together."

"Oh sure," Lunick snorted. "Besides, you act as though you're ordering me around, and I don't take orders from someone like you." Wes turned slightly so that his bangs could cover his eyes slightly.

"I'm sorry for acting hypocritical, but Rui is an important friend of mine," Wes said softly, "I have a bad feeling about this. Please… please help me." Lunick stared surprised at the sound of concern in Wes' voice. For a moment, Lunick even saw the red eyes turn sad for a brief moment.

"All right, I'll do it."

"What?" Wes said, sounding a bit surprised.

"I'll… I'll do it," Lunick said, clearly looking both embarrassed and clearly wishing he didn't say it, "But I'm doing this for your friend Rui! So don't get any idea that I've forgiven you about the incident from earlier."

"Lunick, what are you doing out here?" Lunick jumped and saw that it was Aria. The blond hair girl still looked a bit shaken up but the annoying tone in her voice was still here. "What are you two doing here? Professor Hasting wants you inside the base at all times. No sneaking out! I'm going to be guarding you two at all times."

"Whattttt?" Lunick groaned. "You don't trust us?"

"Uh, duh," Aria said, crossing her arms across her chest. "Now get back in here."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Lunick yawned in annoyance and walked past the door. Wes followed as well and got a scorned look on Aria's face. Obviously, she still thought of him as a pervert.

"Tonight," Wes whispered softly as he walked next to Lunick.

"Yeah," Lunick muttered, wondering if he was doing the right thing, "tonight."

…

It was nighttime and the entire town was pretty quiet. A soft whispering wind passed by Fall City's Ranger base. At the very top, on the second floor, a small window opened. A head poked out and looked left and right to make sure the coast was clear before jumping out and landing easily to the ground.

"You're late," Wes said. Lunick and Minun turned around to see Wes leaning against the wall and looking very impatient. He got up and looked around to make sure Lunick's stunt didn't cause a distraction. So far the coast was still clear.

"Sorry," Lunick said in a harsh whisper, "Aria had a keen eye on me the whole time. I was lucky to escape because she kept checking up on Joel. How did you get out so easily? I thought Hasting was guarding you nonstop."

Wes and Lunick started to walk down the street and though there was not a soul out, the two still moved stealthy and quietly as possible. Minun was on Lunick's shoulder and was snoring a bit as it slept. Lunick, not used to this, was treading quite loudly but Wes, however, moved as though he was a shadow instead of human.

"I put sleeping pills in that professor's cup of tea before he went to bed."

"You WHAT?"

"Shhhh. Relax, it's not like I killed him or anything," Wes said so calmly.

"How can you be so relax after saying that?"

"Because in Orre, killing is more common than sleeping. I can't believe that professor didn't suspect a thing. Anybody could've came in and slit his throat."

_Oh holy Miltank_, Lunick thought with his and Minun's eyes wide open from fright as Wes continued down the street carefully like a thief. _What kind of life this guy had?_ They started to inch away from Wes as though he was some dangerous assassin.

"By the way," Wes said, looking back, realizing they're more into the depth of the city than out, "are we going the right way?" Lunick almost feel to the ground with shock.

"What? You don't know?"

"Oh I'm sorry, I actually did and I was testing you," Wes said sarcastically, "I was hoping to see if a Ranger who lived here his whole life would know the area better than I did."

"Oh ha, ha," Lunick said in an equally sarcastic tone. "And by the way, I've only been here for only a year. The way out of here to Ring Town is in the other direction." Both of them continued walking the other way and very soon they reached the outskirts of town and now were trudging on a dusty path. The lights from the lamps disappeared from the street and now only stars were guiding them.

"Do you know this forest that Spenser was referring to?" Wes asked, not to try and strike up a conversation but to figure out whether or not Lunick actually knew where he was going.

"Yes," Lunick scoffed, "This forest is really close to Ring Town so first we need to pass the Krokka Tunnel."

"Isn't there a quicker way to get there?"

"Well, there is the Dragonite Bus which our Ranger's Dragonite transports high rank rangers to other parts of Fiore. It is a pretty fast way to get to Ring Town."

"So you're not a high rank ranger enough to get the means to fly on that bus." Wes suddenly tensed after he said this. Years of being alert made him suspicious of his surroundings.

"Hey, I've only been here for a year," Lunick tried to explain, "I'm on Rank 6 and one more rank and I'll be able to ride it." Wes didn't look interested enough about rangers but Lunick continued as though he was a tour guide. "Rangers have ranks 1-10 with ten being the highest. This determines how many Pokemon you can bring with you and the length of the capture line use on –"

Lunick never got to finish because Wes suddenly grabbed Lunick by the jacket and pulled him away just in time before a large foot stomped at the place where Lunick was standing.

"Whoa!" Lunick screamed, "What was that?" Wes suddenly realized that it was a large toed foot like a bird's and the foot was connected a long thin leg of a giant "AHHHH! IT'S THE THREE HEADED CHICKEN!"

"SWAQK!" The monster was apparently offended of being called a 'chicken'.

"You really can't shut up can you?" Wes muttered and immediately pulled again to prevent one of the heads from pecking Lunick. The force of the beak as it missed its mark and hit the ground caused it to crack.

"Oh snap," Lunick muttered, this time dodging out of the way without Wes' help. The bird screamed and charged at the two of them. "Minun! Get it!" Immediately, Minun's cheeks sparked with blue electricity that crackled and snap in the air. The shadow reared back for a moment but then suddenly charged again.

"Split up!" Wes ordered, "We need to confuse it!" Immediately, the two sped in opposite directions. Lunick hated to admit it, but, looking back, Wes' plan was pretty good. Immediately, the monster's two heads on each side tried to snap at them with their long necks but because they were trying to move in different directions, the two legs faltered around and collapsed from confusion. Lunick immediately pounce on the monster and twisted its heads around like a knot. It was then that Lunick saw the perpetrator and was shocked.

"Th-this is Joel's Dodrio!" Lunick gasped. Immediately, the bird retaliated by slamming its feet against Lunick's chest. He flew backward but was immediately helped by Wes. "How did – why is it –"

"Wahhhh? What a lousy Pokemon this one is." Wes and Lunick immediately saw a strange guy coming from behind the bushes. He was bald and had narrow eyes on his ghastly pale skin. He wore a red vest over a gray shirt and long black baggy pants.

Lunick gaped at the sight. _Who was this guy?_ Wes immediately tried to move behind Lunick so that the guy couldn't see him. The guy looked completely frustrated while the bird Pokemon got up and tried to untie the knot in its necks.

"Mannnn and it took such a long time to get it too…" the guy scratched his head and sighed, "Oh well, Dodrio, get rid of those two!" Immediately, Dodrio charged at Lunick and Wes, but this time, large blue electricity shot out and hit Dodrio. The Pokemon immediately cringed, unable to move.

"Wha-?"

"You were the one who injured Joel, weren't you? And you provoked Dodrio into a frenzy rampage?" Lunick demanded at the baffled person. Minun's cheeks buzzed angrily with the electricity used to paralyze the bird. Lunick took out his Capture Styler out and glared at the man. "I'm going to release Dodrio from your clutch and then I'm going to teach you a lesson you'll never forget."

**Author's Notes**

Well now, we're finally getting into the action. Lunick and Wes are joining forces and so far they have nothing in common. Great combo. Lol.

Anyways, what do you guys think of the new anime and new Pokemon BW game coming out? I hope the graphics are good as they say they are.

You know, they haven't done a Pokemon Colosseum anime... what's up with that? I want to see what Wes and Rui would look like! And, we could use a different plot twist…

Anyways, let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**Trutown**

**littlmidget123**

**Ketchum Kid**

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**hydro-serpent58**

**Sparky**

…

All right, that's it from me.

See you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	5. Heroes Do Not Exist

**Disclaimer: A fanfic writer can't own Pokemon. **

Hey guys! I'm back! I wrote a pretty good amount and lots of exciting things are happening. :D

I am starting to explain the connection between the two games' bad guys so it might clear things up… or it might not. Lol.

Anyways, enjoy the chapter.

**Chapter 4:**

Wes knew that they were in worse trouble than before when he saw that Snagem guy. Wes' first thought was to retreat because of the dangerous situation, but then that stupid ranger guy had to ruin everything.

_Really, now_, Wes thought after listening to Lunick's brave speech, _teach a lesson for that guy to never forget? What is with these ridiculous hero lines? Well, I hope he doesn't say my name. If that Snagem guy hears it then…_

"All right Wes!" Lunick said, happy to be able to show off his skill, "I'll show you how tough we rangers are!"

"Miii!" Minun called out, looking just as happy as its trainer.

_And hope just left the room_, Wes thought as he smacked the palm of his hand against his head. However, to Wes' surprise, the Snagem guy looked only confused. As though he was trying to remember something…

"Wes… Wes… that name," the guy was scratching his head and looked confused at the familiarity of the name.

This guy… maybe he is a newcomer, which would explain why he didn't recognize Wes… either that or just plain stupid. Knowing Team Snagem, Wes was leaning toward the latter.

Now that the moonlight was brighter now, Wes could see the difference in the Pokemon. Its supposingly white eyes were now filled with red and the pupils were dilating as though it was injected with a huge amount of anger serum into its system. However, Wes remembered what happened back in Cipher. He couldn't tell if this was a Shadow Pokemon or a simply, as Lunick would put it, an enraged three headed chicken.

"Come on Minun!" Lunick grinned, not noticing the Snagem's or Wes' confused faces, and took out his Capture Styler. The red large phone style contraption suddenly sprung out a thick and about half an arm long glowing blue stick from the top. "Time to rescue Joel's Dodrio!" The large three headed bird squawked with anger and charged at Lunick. The ranger grinned and jumped into the air, confusing the bird Pokemon as it looked up with surprise.

"Capture time!" Lunick opened the phone and inside was a large white button. He pressed it and immediately that small top came out from the small opening on the bottom of the styler where the top was held. The top was small, fitting into the palm of the hand, and was white with half of a purple sphere in the middle of the top. There was blue lining on the side to protect the fragile device. The top was spinning fast – way faster than what a normal person can make.

Wes noticed that a faint white thick line emitting blue color glow followed the top like the streak from a shooting star but it was only about fifteen feet long. "Capture on!" Lunick held his styler and waved it around like a conductor orchestrating a symphony except his whole arm was extended out more than a normal conductor and he was moving it in a circle, causing the stick to spin round and round to make a circle of light. To Wes' surprise, the top was moving in the same way as the Capture Styler. If Lunick moved it left, then the spinning top moved left as well. Immediately the top started to fly in the air as it spun around Dodrio. Every time the top touched its streaking light (like a Skitty going after its tail), the light become stronger and powerful. The Dodrio Pokemon screeched with anger and started to charge at the white light, but the top immediately zoomed away, taking away the white light which was glowing even brighter.

"It didn't touch the line," Lunick said this as though relieved and made the top go after the Dodrio again. "Minun, stop it in its track!" Again, Minun sent out another strong crackling blue electricity from its cheeks and zapped it at Dodrio. The Pokemon struggled and squirmed but it was paralyzed. It was then that the Snagem guy suddenly came back to reality and noticed the situation in front of him.

"NOOOO! Not my Dodrio!" The Snagem guy screeched and tried to charge at Lunick but was immediately stopped by Wes, who appeared so mysteriously. The Snagem guy tried to reach for something in his pocket, but Wes grabbed the guy by the throat.

"It wasn't your Dodrio. You stole it from someone and injured him in the process… which reminds me, we need to have a little chat," Wes said in a soft yet threatening tone. Before the guy could react, Wes let go of the guy's throat and gave a swift side kick at the guy's knee.

"Gakkk," the Snagem guy cried as he fell to the ground; his kneecaps felt as though they were on fire or even worse, broken. "You… who are you?" Wes searched the guy's pocket and found what he was looking for. In it was the same Capture Styler Lunick had, except it was much bigger and colored with purple and black. Oh no, if this guy had this then that must mean…

Meanwhile, Lunick, not noticing this, was finished the loops of his capture. He was almost done and was about to be finished anytime soon.

"Capture… Complete!" Immediately, the line of light was glowing so bright that a thin shell of yellow light surrounded the Dodrio. The top immediately zoomed back at Lunick who expertly caught it with one hand before inserting back into his Capture Styler. The gold sphere around Dodrio was now slowly fading away.

Dodrio stood there for a long time, not even acting threatening now. "Dodrio!" Lunick said happily as he came up to the calmed down Pokemon. "I'm so glad you're okay. Come on! Joel will be so -." What happened next, Lunick didn't have time to react. The Dodrio screeched and the middle head's beak stabbed into the unexpected Lunick's arm.

"GAHHH!" Lunick yelled as he fell to the ground. Minun fell and tumbled a couple of feet away. Lunick's arm was bleeding nonstop and for a moment he couldn't move due to surprise. To his horror, the Dodrio in front of him screeched and stomped onto Lunick with one of its three toed feet and pushed down hard until Lunick's lung gave away and was gasping for air. Dodrio's three mouths opened and a large red two dimensional triangles was formed – a Tri Attack.

Lunick immediately realized that the Pokemon was about to kill him... and there was nothing he could do about it. "NO!" Immediately a shadow came and grabbed the three necks, causing the attack to sway and missed Lunick, blasting into the forest instead. This also caused Dodrio to stumble, allowing Lunick to be freed from its grasp. He looked up and saw that Wes was now parrying against the Pokemon. The Dodrio was now going out of control and attacking aimlessly. Miraculously, Wes was not missing a single beat and dodged quite skillfully. The only thing Wes really did was put on his metal plated goggles that seemed to reflect easily in the moonlight, causing the Dodrio to flinch as it tried to take the human down.

"Wes!" Lunick called out but immediately stumbled to the ground. The pain in Lunick's chest was too great.

"Ha!" the Snagem member grinned with happiness at the situation. He was still on the ground but definitely in a better mood. "You just made things worse with yourself you stupid ranger! That was a Shadow Pokemon and you broke the bond that held it under my control! Now it'll keep rampaging and killing anything in sight!" The Snagem guy started laughing, not realizing that killing everything in sight now included him.

"What? Sh-shadow Pokemon?" Lunick groaned as he tried to stop the bleeding. _What was this guy talking about? Who was he and what was this bond he was talking about?_ Lunick looked over at Wes and to his surprise, saw that Wes didn't even look remotely shocked at this new piece of information. It slowly dawned on Lunick that maybe Wes already knew and if he did, why did he hide it?

…

Wes gritted his teeth with frustration. He couldn't keep up this dance for long. Sooner or later, he was going to get tired and slow down, allowing the Dodrio to finally hit him. It was only a matter of time. Wes could only think of one way to stop this but the last time he tried it failed miserably. But it was better than running away. But first, Wes needed it to stop moving… That was when he spotted a couple feet away, Minun groaning and rubbing its head. It had been knocked out and was just waking up.

"MINUN!" Wes yelled to grab the Pokemon's attention, "I need your help!" Minun looked shocked at the situation and cried in pain as it watched Lunick struggled to get up. His bleeding arm lay uselessly at his side.

"Minun!" Lunick yelled, trying not to scream with pain, "Help Wes!" Minun's first instinct was to run over to Lunick, but seeing Wes' need o f help, the little mouse Pokemon charged over to Wes and sent out another buzz of electricity just before Dodrio's beak pecked Wes. Wes noticed that the electricity Minun gave out was weaker than before and Dodrio was struggling less than usual. Still it was enough to buy time.

"Now it's my turn!" Wes grabbed a Poke ball, a ball capsule that was red on top and white on bottom, from his bag and clench tightly in his left hand. Suddenly, the machine piece that covered his entire left arm started to hum and the Poke ball in his hand started to glow. Just as Dodrio managed to break through the electricity bind, Wes threw the Poke ball at it, and upon contact, there was a sudden burst of light. Dodrio was sucked into the Poke ball. It dropped to the ground, rolled several times before finally making a pinging noise to indicate that Wes had caught the Dodrio.

Silence filled the air as Wes sank down from exhaustion, as Lunick painfully struggled to watch with shock, and as the Snagem grunt stared in horror at what just happened. Wes carefully took the Poke ball as though it might explode and gently place it into a large pocket in his blue trench coat. Then recognition was painted all over the grunt's face.

"Wait a minute! You're Wes! Ex-member of the team! No way, you're that traitor!" The guy started gabbing and pointing at the tired Wes. Wes glared angrily at the bad timing of this stupid idiot and walked over toward him. The stupid guy faltered at the look of Wes' face and started to open and close his mouth like a drunken Magikarp. For a horrified moment as Wes toward over the frightened guy, Lunick thought that Wes was going to kill the man, but instead, Wes gave a swift rabbit punch, knocking the guy unconscious with a large bruise on his head.

"I don't stoop to the level of a killer," Wes stated as though he could see Lunick's shock face even though his back was facing Lunick. Wes, remembering the basic items that all Snagem members must carry, looked through the Snagem member's bag and found a large and thick rope. He tied the unconscious man up with thick knots. "There is a difference between thievery and killing."

"Tch, you sound way cooler than me… like a hero," Lunick grumbled. Wes pushed his metal goggles up to his forehead, came over and helped Lunick up. The bleeding has slow down to a trickle thanks to Lunick's constant pressure against the wound. Wes looked at the wound on Lunick's chest to see if there were any damages to the ribs. Minun sat down next to Lucas. There was an uneasy silence that was broken by Wes.

"I'm not a hero," Wes stated flatly as though this was a somewhat contradictory statement. Wes took out some white bandages from his rugged sack and started to tie Lunick's arm. "Besides, you don't trust me."

"Well, I don't," Lunick said defiantly, "But you kind of save my life back there, so I guess I sort of... but I still don't trust you!" For a moment, Wes' face flickered with amusement and perhaps a hit of laughter. Wes finished bandaging Lunick's hand and helped the ranger up.

"Can you stand up?" Wes asked. Lunick tested his weight and almost lurched to the side if Wes had not held tightly onto him.

"No, good," Lunick groaned, "My head is kind of swirling." Wes immediately dropped Lunick back down on the ground. "Give me a minute," Lunick said, trying not to look too wimpy.

"Sure," Wes said and took out his PDA and he, judging from Lunick's point of view, was sending mail to someone.

"Who are you talking to?" Lunick asked.

"A friend," Wes said and didn't elaborate. Lunick was starting to get sick and tired of this one-sided conversation and decided to take a risk. "So, what did that guy mean 'ex-member'? Do you know him?" Wes face immediately darkened and didn't respond, but that didn't stop Lunick from continuing.

"What is this Shadow Pokemon? What was that bond that person was talking about? How did you catch Dodrio? Who was that guy anyways? Wes, who are you?" It was several long minutes before Wes responded

"You know, you talk too much," Wes said.

"Yeah, a lot of people told me that, but it doesn't mean I stop talking." This time Wes didn't laugh and continued to frown.

"Something you shouldn't get involve with," Wes said harshly. "The less you know the better." The way he said it made it sound like there was something far worse going on. "It was pure luck I managed to capture your friend's Dodrio. Speaking of which, I'm going to need to keep the Pokemon."

"What?" Lunick demanded, "Dodrio is Joel's. Just because you caught it doesn't mean it's yours!"

"Then what is it called when I capture a Pokemon?" Wes asked sarcastically. Lunick sputtered, trying to come up a comeback but Wes wasn't interested in arguing.

"I'm not going to keep it permanently; I needed to borrow it until I can fix the problem. Do you really want Dodrio running around like that?" Lunick recalled how Dodrio's mood violently changed. Of course Dodrio was acting out of control before Lunick used his Capture Styler but after, it was as though it was going berserk. Yet, Wes acted calmly…

"You sound like you dealt with Pokemon like Dodrio before," Lunick said. This time Wes didn't say anything and Lunick knew his comment was right on target. "Is Dodrio a - what did that guy called it- a Shadow Pokemon?"

"I don't know," Wes said carefully and sounded truthful to an extent.

"How long will you keep things hidden in the dark?" Lunick grumbled, now trying to get up again. This time, his legs didn't give away. "How can I trust you if you don't tell me what's going on?"

"You don't have to trust me." There was a stun silence from Lunick.

"What?" Lunick said shocked, "Trust is important if we're to work as a team."

"I work solo." Wes said this firmly and before Lunick could object, Wes continued, "We have a common goal so until we reach that forest, I'm going to help out. After that, we're done." Lunick frowned in frustration.

"What is the big deal in working as a team? People judge you because you keep hiding your true self! And what about your friend? Isn't she part of your team?" Wes didn't say anything and changed the topic.

"We need to get moving. Someone could be watching us now."

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Lunick asked, thrown off by the sudden change of topic, and Wes rolled his eyes again at Lunick's nonstop questions.

Wes pointed at the Snagem guy and said, "That guy is definitely not alone. He attacked us, so there is a good chance he was here to guard the tunnel. If we don't pass it soon, they'll figure out something is suspicious and tighten security in there."

"Wait, the Fall Rangers went to the tunnel earlier and didn't see anything suspicious," Lunick said carefully. "If they are in there, they would've taken them out as well as Joel."

"Who said they were there earlier? They probably took out Joel so that people will become cautious and wouldn't leave town and waited until later in the day to move in." The way Wes talked made Lunick feel stupid. Then again, Wes had been treating Lunick as though he was stupid.

Lunick frowned at Wes' street smart conclusions. He acted as though he knew how undercover organizations worked. There was definitely something shady about this guy's past. "So," Wes continued, looking put out from answering Lunick's questions, "Any suggestions on what to do with that guy? Or do I have to come up with another solution?"

Lunick looked furious at Wes' mocked question. Lunick looked around as though for an answer to their most pressing problem. He suddenly noticed a night time Pokemon crawling up the tree. Taking another closer look, the Pokemon ranger noticed that it was an Ariados, apparently watching them silently the whole time. "Well, then you want a plan," Lunick grinning at his stroke of inspiration as he took out his Capture Styler, "I have a good one."

…

Wes and Lunick observed the large darkness inside the opening of the cave. Both were positioned so that they were lying against the outer wall of the hole and peeked into the hole slowly but carefully. Wes had been overly careful to the point that it drove Lunick insane and now, Wes was contemplating whether or not to go into the cave.

"Really?" Lunick said exasperatedly, "Do we really need to do this?" Wes didn't respond. He was in the state where whenever Lunick asked a question, he would ignore it.

"I think there is no one really here. Must be minimum security," Wes muttered, thinking it was odd. He motioned with his hand to Lunick, letting him know that it was safe to move. They slowly crawled their way in, allowing the darkness to swallow them up. It was then that the two realized a major problem.

"I can't see," Lunick grumbled. Although, the ground was smooth, there were still rocks that were big enough to cause a stumble. Minun whimpered, obviously afraid of the dark. "It shouldn't be this dark here at night. Where are the lights?" Lunick fumbled in his pocket for a flashlight but Wes, immediately sensing what he was doing, grabbed Lunick's hand.

"No, we can't let ourselves get away that easily." Lunick sighed in frustration at Wes' lack of cooperation. He suddenly noticed several Zubat flying around in the cave. They seemed to be more agitated than usual.

"Then I'll just ask for help." Before Wes could protest, Lunick grabbed the styler and used the same method as Dodrio to capture one of the Zubat. The top spun round and round, creating a bright light and encasing the Zubat with a yellow sphere. The wild Pokemon flew to Lunick and waited patiently for orders. Carefully, Lunick touched the Pokemon and sighed in relief when it didn't bite it. "That was a close one. So my styler isn't the problem."

"What are you talking about?" Wes asked as he watched the Zubat with some interest. The way Zubat was able to listen that easily. Minun and Zubat were even starting a conversation now in their own Pokemon words.

"Oh look who is asking questions now," Lunick said sarcastically but didn't press forward because Wes was definitely not in a good mood. The Zubat flew up ahead, screeching once in a while to listen up ahead. Both started to walk and it was then that Lunick decided to explain what he meant. "When I tried to do that capture with Dodrio, it didn't work like I thought it would. I was wondering if it was because of my lack of ability or something…" Wes realized that Lunick was apprehensive at the situation. This obviously never happened before and Lunick was wondering if it was his fault Dodrio's capture failed.

"Let's go," Wes said, unable to think of anything to really say. Lunick took out a small flashlight and shined it on the ground for them to see. Wes could see the darkness stretch for miles though and wondered how long it'll take to get to the other side. "How far is this tunnel?"

"Ummm, not too far. The main road should take only about fifteen minutes. But at the rate we're going, probably twenty… Wes, are you sure there are people here?" Lunick looked at the empty place with apprehensive. "It seems deserted. Though, too deserted."

_Strange_, Wes thought, there is no one here. _Does that mean that Snagem guy simply went out here by himself and just happened to be standing there? No, that sounded way too weird… No one would do that. But still, guarding by himself…_

Immediately, Zubat immediately frowned and started chattering as it flew around in frenzy.

"Zubat, what's wrong?" Lunick asked and the Pokemon flew in front of Lunick's face and started to act nervous still. "I think its saying that there is something strange ahead…" Wes suddenly noticed a lot of wild Pokemon hiding in the dark. There were Paras, Magnemite, Machop, and Diglett. They were all looking suspiciously and fearfully at the two humans but didn't do anything. Then he heard it, footsteps and the sound of wheels moving against the dirt road.

"Hide!" Without hesitation, Wes and Lunick immediately jumped to the sides and hide between the large boulders. Lunick fumbled and panicked as he tried to turn off his flashlight. Immediately, the footsteps got louder and the entire cave got brighter. Pokemon were hidden and shivering despite the fact that it was slightly warmer in the cave thanks to the light.

"Man, this is sure easy work. Shipments are so much easier to deal with now." The male voice sounded young, around mid twenties, yet immature. Wes narrowed his eyes with suspicion. Shipments? That would explain the need for a guard at the entrace. But they seem so lax. Have they been doing this so many times that they have gotten overconfident?

"Anyways," the male voice continued, "Why in the world couldn't we deliver it by air? It would be easier?"

"Because, having air mail is a lot more suspicious. Plus, the air is being guarded by that Wintown Rangers. We can't risk being intercepted like that. At least on the ground, we have a better chance of escaping." This voice was female and sounded high pitch. Her voice literally sent chills down Lunick's spine. Zubat's and Minun's excellent hearing caused him to whimper in pain as Lunick held them both in his arm.

Suddenly the footsteps were right next to them, and Lunick looked up to see two tall people passing them. One was a male with brown hair that looked bowl shape and the female had blond short hair with bangs pushed to the side in a sweeping manner. Both were wearing strange goggles that reflected purple and yellow lenses respectfully. The weirdest thing about them, despite walking around in a cave in the middle of the night, was that both were wearing what appeared to be white uniforms in cowboy style. The guy was wearing long wide pants and wrist length gloves along with platform shoes. The woman was wearing a short miniskirt with a mini tank top that was tied by the neck. She had long elbow length white gloves and knee high cowboy boots. The girl was holding a lantern. The guy was pushing what appeared to be two cages on top of one another by using a small flat wooden cart.

The light shined on the cages and Wes and Lunick saw what were inside. Wes' face immediately paled and Lunick's face turned to shock.

"Strange that they didn't want these shadowfied for a long while until after they arrived from Orre," the girl said, giggling at the tranquilized creatures. "I guess the Snagem leader had a bit of a soft spot for both of them." Lunick noticed that Wes' face turned even paler. He looked like he was in pain, watching the two people laugh. Oddly, Wes' expression looked so familiar. Lunick tried to remember what was it in Wes' face that was so… wait a minute. Lunick had seen that look before on missions for people who had lost their… At that moment, something clicked inside of Lunick's head.

"So, where are we taking these?" the girl asked.

"I think to the factory to become Shadow-"

Without hesitation, Lunick got out of his hiding place and smashed the two people to the ground. The cages clattered the ground and echoed in the dark cave, causing many wild Pokemon to start panicking.

"WHA-?" the guy sputtered and saw that there was a strange kid trying to break the iron cages' locks with a rock. Blang! Blang! Blang! An intruder? That was when the guy noticed that the person who pushed them to the ground was wearing a red jacket uniform with black and white jumpsuit…

"Ewww!" the girl squealed, "A ranger!" She acted as though she actually believed that rangers give off cooties or something.

"Hey!" the guy cried and grabbed the ranger. Under the light now, the cowboy guy could see that this ranger had black hair that parted neatly and evenly from left and right. "Who do you think you are?" Before the ranger could explain, or object to explaining, another shadow came out of nowhere and pushed the cowboy grunt away from the ranger. The grunt stumbled and fell on his partner.

"Ewww!" the girl squealed again, "A guy!" Before the two of them could react the new shadow took out what appeared to be a… Pokeball? He threw it at the two stumbling grunts and they suddenly found themselves face to face with a giant three headed chicken. The Dodrio squawked with anger and it seemed to be almost on the verge of striking anything in its path.

"Put your hands in the air," the shadow growled. Awkwardly, both grunts put their hands in the air.

"Oh boy."

…

"What the hell were you doing?" Wes hissed with anger, grabbing Lunick by the collar. Wes and Lunick both had finished tying up the two grunts before Wes, Lunick objected to the very end, knocked both of them out by ordering Lunick's captured Zubat to use Supersonic. Of course, after doing its job, the Zubat flew away. Thankfully, Dodrio was back in Wes' Poke ball without any incident. However, the same can't be said for Lunick. "You almost gave our position away! What if there were other people here? We could've been in big trouble now!"

"Hey! I was trying to help them!" Lunick pointed to the two cages whose lock was now all bent out of shape due to the repeated blows from the rock. "And what about you? You… you looked like you were in pain…" Wes stared for a second before releasing Lunick and grabbed a small key from his pocket. He tried to fit it into the lock but had great difficulty thanks to Lunick's repeated smashing.

"Where did you get that key?" Lunick asked suspiciously.

"From that guy," Wes said, pointing to the unconscious grunt that had his mouth wide open and was drooling.

Both of the hostages were muttering something about a Skitty and fish sticks…

"When?" Lunick asked, trying to remember. He didn't see Wes searching in the guy's pocket for a key.

"I swiped it when I knocked into him." Wes was so calm and managed to open one of the cages.

_My next question would be - How?_ Lunick thought, wondering how exactly quick Wes' hands were. Lunick's face turned into more shock when he saw how happy and excited Wes looked. He didn't have that normal evil grin he had when he managed to catch that Dodrio. His looked friendlier, like a normal human being should be. The cage door finally swung open and Wes reached in to take out a weakened Espeon. The purple cat stared up groggily and tears immediately flow as it cuddled into Wes' arm.

"Hey, there," Wes whispered and hugged the Pokemon closer to him as though he was afraid Espeon would disappeared. Then, still holding onto Espeon with one hand, Wes tried to open the second cage but had a hard time.

"Here, let me help," Lunick said, still a bit shock at this new side of Wes. Lunick grabbed the key and fit the key into the lock with great difficulty but managed to open the door. Suddenly, a sleek black Pokemon came out and with the last of its strength, jumped into Wes' arm as well.

"Hey, Umbreon," Wes whispered and hugged the two Pokemon close to him.

"Ar-are you crying?" Lunick asked, seeing a small tear falling down Wes' cheek. Wes didn't respond and continued to hug the Pokemon. Lunick, now truly embarrassed, looked away as though the scenery was much more amusing. It was a couple of minutes before Wes broke the silence.

"Lunick," Wes said his voice very steady, "These are my Pokemon – Espeon and Umbreon." Lunick looked back and saw the two Pokemon looked back very appreciatively.

"Hello," Lunick muttered. Minun came over and patted both Pokemon and talked in its little Pokemon talk. Wes immediately returned the two Pokemon to two worn out Poke ball and got up.

"We have to find a place to heal them," Wes said.

"Why did you do anything?" Lunick felt the bottle up feeling he had ever since he realized those two Pokemon were Wes' come out. "Those were your Pokemon. Why didn't you try to save them?" Wes didn't say anything and got up.

"Come on," Wes said, "We need to go –."

"I don't understand you!" Lunick hissed angrily, "You act like you don't care about them but then you do! Why in the world did you just let those guys pass?"

"I don't know the situation," Wes said angrily, "If I rashly went out like you did, who knows-."

"Oh, _who knows_," Lunick imitated Wes' words in a higher pitch voice before reverting to his normal tone, "What the hell! Are you telling me, you're willing to throw even your Pokemon away just because you're worried about the consequences?" Lunick felt his throat grabbed by one hand and found his back against the wall. Wes' eyes were flashing dangerously again. Minun flinched in shock and cried out in anger. It tried to pull on Wes' leg to stop the fighting. Lunick wanted to fight back but before he could do so…

"You! Stop acting like a super hero," Wes snarled, "There is no such thing as winning – especially winning without consequences. Until you realize that, you're nothing but a stupid idiot who thinks that the world revolves around you." Lunick felt his air way clogging up before Wes let go and hurried down the passage, leaving Lunick all by himself to massage his throat and Minun trying to calm Lunick down. "Don't ever tell me about consequences when you haven't sacrifice anything in your life!"

Lunick was burning with anger. Consequences? He knew about consequences! Every day he had to help others. He could've become a Pokemon trainer but instead, he wanted to become a ranger – a profession that works with Pokemon and help others. What does this guy know about him? All he does is swipe people stuff and care about his Pokemon only when it isn't a liability to him. Lunick got up and grudgingly followed Wes. There was no way Lunick wanted to work with this guy. EVER!

Lunick was about make a turn in the tunnel when he started to hear voices and a strong light was coming up ahead.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here, back from the dead already." Lunick froze and held back. He peeked over and noticed that Wes, his back to Lunick, was facing a strange guy. Lunick suddenly realize that this strange guy was dressed exactly in the same way as the guy with the Dodrio. It was then that Lunick realized the guy was flanked by people looking exactly the same as him. The headphones, the bald head, and the red vest – it was like a quintuplet marathon or something.

"Hello Wakin," Wes growled. Lunick couldn't see clearly but Wes was clearly shaking. From fear or fury, Lunick wasn't really sure. Minun shivered and looked at Lunick. The Pokemon's eyes were clearly asking if they should help or not. However, Lunick was now being thrown with another problem. Wes definitely knew these guys, but who are they? Is Wes truly a –

"I see you found your little Pokemon," Wakin grinned and chuckled. "And, I heard you talking to someone. New friend? Aren't you going to introduce him to me?" A couple of the guys laughed from behind and Lunick immediately backed away. If Wes was with them, then there was no doubt Lunick was in trouble. There was a pause before Wes spoke.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Wes said coolly, "Perhaps you should take off your headphones once in a while and clean out your ears."

"Ouch, burned!" Wakin said, though he looked highly amused. "But you know, the boss figured you never really died. He even punished us for almost killing you but was relieved to hear that we never found your body. He suspected that you would come here as long as we brought out a rumor and bait."

"Is that why you attacked that ranger?" Wes asked in a steely voice. Lunick felt his heart pump faster. These people were the ones who attacked Joel? Lunick's hands clenched in fury onto the boulder in front of him.

"Bingo! I'm just surprise you came out here earlier than expected. You are unpredictable. Just like when you blew up our base just to steal our machine that you're wearing right now." Wakin motioned his head to Wes' left arm.

"Wakin, I'm not here to talk about the past," Wes said, sounding serious, "Now, I'm going to ask you once and only once, so listen carefully. Where is Rui?"

_Rui? _Lunick was confused at this question until he remembered that Rui was the girl that Wes wanted to save earlier. Who was she anyways… his sister?

"Rui? Ruiiii? Oh, that Rui. So you miss your girlfriend," Wakin said in a playful voice. The other grunts started laughing hard now, their voices echoing in the cave.

Lunick gaped in shock. _Wes had a girlfriend? Rui was Wes' girlfriend? Who would be attracted to someone who was dark and mysterious and who apparently blew up a building?_

"Well, sorry," Wakin said, "but we're not here to answer your question. The boss just wanted to let you know, that he is willing to give you another chance. We have made a grand discovery here and would love you to join in as well."

"You really think I believe that? Do you really think I want another chance?"

"Well, no," Wakin admitted, "but it was worth a shot." Wakin snapped his fingers and what happened was so fast that even Lunick didn't have time to react. A large rumbled filled the air before the cave's wall broke and a large sumo wrestler Pokemon came out in between Wes and Wakin.

"Hariyama," Wakin said calmly as though he was savoring this moment, "I know you don't have any Pokemon strong enough to battle a wild Hariyama so I suggest you turn yourself in."

"Shut the hell up Wakin." This time Wakin didn't grin at Wes' comment and looked really mad.

"It'll be just like last time right?" Wakin grinned, "When you couldn't save your little girly friend Rui, only this time, you can't save her at all." Wes' lost control. He charged at Wakin, only to be blocked by the large Pokemon. The Hariyama gave a battle cry and smashed his large orange hands at Wes who skillfully dodged it but stumbled a bit due to the enclosed space. Lunick could feel something was wrong. The Hariyama was going out of control as though wild and seemed way stronger than the Hariyama that Lunick had encountered… yet, it was only attack Wes… why was that? It was like earlier with that Dodrio…

"ARGH!" Lunick watched as Hariyama managed to pin Wes against the wall. Wes groaned from pain while Wakin looked up, very pleased. It was Wakin's look of pleasure in watching a human being being torutured that Lunick, once again, acted without thinking.

"Leave him alone!" Lunick yelled and came out of his hiding space.

"Well now," Wakin said surprised, "So this is your new friend."

"Lu-Lunick…" Wes groaned. His mouth was bleeding from the inside and he coughed in pain. Perhaps it was Lunick's sudden appearance, but Hariyama immediately let go of Wes, who slid to the ground, and charged at Lunick.

Oh snap, Lunick thought as he dodged just in time as Hariyama slammed his fist against the cave wall. The rock wall started to crack and the crack grew larger and larger until it reached to the top.

Suddenly the cave rumbled and Lunick saw heavy rocks crashing down.

"It's a cave in!" Someone yelled and everybody started screaming and running away. Lunick grabbed and turn on his flashlight. His first thought was to run as well but when he saw Wes lying there, Lunick hesitated. Wes called him an idiot but then… he also refused to sell Lunick out. Maybe he wasn't such a bad guy.

Deciding that he couldn't just leave him there, Lunick immediately rushed up to Wes. Lunick felt Wes' ribs and was relieved to know that there were no broken bones even though Wes groaned in pain. He was starting to lose conscious.

"Wes! Wes!" Lunick yelled and tried to pull the guy up. However, the rocks were coming down so fast that there was no way Lunick could carry an injured person out of here in time.

"Poke ball," Wes whispered softly that Lunick had to move closer to hear him. "Do-Dodrio." Without questioning, Lunick grabbed Wes' Pokeball from his belt and sent out Dodrio who squawked at the dangerous situation. "Hurry, before it starts to get out of control…"

"You know," Lunick said in wonder, looking at Wes' Pokeball, "This is the first time I used a Poke ball. I must say, I think I did a pretty good –."

"Lunick!" Wes hissed.

"MIIII!" Minun hissed as well.

"Oh right, right," Lunick muttered and helped Wes onto the Dodrio before getting on himself. "All right! Go Drumstick!"

"Drumstick?" Wes repeated. Dodrio screeched in anger at its new nickname but immediately started to run. "Come on! Faster, faster!" Lunick called, trying to stay on without getting smacked in the head by anything. Minun, on Lunick's shoulder, shuddered in fear as the bird Pokemon kept running and jumping.

"The exit!" Lunick yelled, seeing the end of the dark tunnel. "Come on! COME ON!" Dodrio gave its last spurt of energy and jumped out of the cave just as a large boulder came crashing down, sealing the entrance. After a couple of more steps, Dodrio tripped and fell to the ground, causing its three riders to tumbled down and sprawled across the grassy field. Lunick could smell the grass through his nose and looked up to see Wes struggling to get up and Minun trying to lift its head up.

"We…" Lunick panted in relief, "We did it." And immediately, due to sheer exhaustion, Lunick collapsed and went to sleep.

**Author's Notes**

"Who would be attracted to someone who was dark and mysterious and who apparently blew up a building?" I know some people who would be interested in him. XP

Random news. Don't read if you don't know and don't want to know anything about the new BW things.

What do you guys think about the new characters and Pokemon they recently showed for BW? I think Dento is a lot cooler than he looks in the anime. The deer Pokemon looks a little too pink for my taste but it is cute. The swan looks okay too.

And in the anime, Iris is kind of… weird. I mean she doesn't need to carry a bag since her hair is one. Lol. I wonder if she is a trainer and I bet a hundred fanfic bucks that Dento will be participating in that musical thing which would so likely appear in the anime.

Anyways, the action is a bit limited in the next chapter but hopefully, I can find more ways to add humor.

Let's thank my reviewers.

…

**littlmidget123**

**hydroserpent-58** (hmmm, Rui being in the forest will be explained later. Actually, in the game, the character you play as (Lunick or Solana) will be the newcomer while the other will be there already. I'm kind of doing this as if Lunick is the male character. And all your questions will be answered later. Lol. Thanks for reviewing.)

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**Trutown**

**Jarkes**

**Crownofthorns**

…

All right that's it from me.

See you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	6. The Teamwork of Three

**Disclaimer: Pokemon is not owned by this fanfic writer.**

Hey now. A new chapter! Yay! It is a bit shorter but has a bit of humor and darker tone. Bit ironic isn't it. :D

By the way, if I made any game references error, let me know ASAP.

Enjoy!

**Chapter 5:**

"Professor Hasting! Professor Hasting!" Keith, one of the Fall City's Pokemon Ranger, yelled while pounding on the door of Professor's Hasting's room. "Open up! It is an emergency!" After a couple minutes of painful silence, Keith wrenched open the door and saw the old ma snoring very loudly on the floor. Next to the old man was a spilled cup of coffee that stained the carpet floor. "PROFESSOR!"

"Zzsmch… what?" Hasting muttered, his eyes fluttering for a second before shifting into a more comfortable position before going back to sleep. Hasting continued to snore much to Keith's dismay.

"Professor Hasting, this is an emergency! Lunick and that other guy disappeared last night!"

"Hmmm, that's great," Hasting muttered and waved Keith away. The ranger sighed and decided to take a different approach. According to Joel, this method always worked.

"That's not all! Your assistant decided to quit and left for Summerland!"

"WHATTTTT!" Hasting was wide awake now and reaching for his hat on the hat rack and grabbing his suitcase, "NOOOO! NOT MY ASSISSTANT!"

"Just kidding professor," Keith said quickly and dragged Hasting out of the room, "But seriously, this is an emergency! Lunick and that white hair guy escaped last night and left something troublesome for us!"

"Wes?" the professor said with shock in his eyes. "When did he slip out? I remember he gave me coffee before he went to… bed…"Hasting scratched his head as though trying to remember what happened after that. Keith ignored the professor and continued to drag the old man till they were at the on the outskirt of Fall City and close to the tunnel that lead to Ring Town.

The first thing that Hasting noticed was that the Krokka Tunnel had caved in and the entrance was sealed by large boulders of rocks. Hasting immediately feared that Lunick and Wes are trapped in the tunnel. Hopefully, the other exit was still open.

There was already a huge group of civilians surrounding a nearby tree. This puzzled Hasting because usually the caved in tunnel should be more interesting than a tree. Of course, whatever the tree had, Hasting couldn't see because of the massive crowd blocking his view. There were several Fall rangers there trying to maintain and understand the situation. Aria, straight and tall as usual, was commanding the place. She had a serious irritable look on her face and was obviously not in a good mood.

"Move it people! Rangers only! You two over there-" Aria pointed at two rangers who were trying to figure out what to do in the situation, "get some Pokemon's assist and remove the rocks that are blocking the cave! And you! Yes, you! Get someone to cut this web!"

"Aria seemed to be in a bad mood," Hasting said. "What does she mean by web?"

"You'll see," Keith muttered and then yelled, "Aria! I brought the professor!" Aria turned and noticed Hasting and Keith trying to swim through the sea of people. When Hasting managed to push through the crowd, he immediately realized what the fuss was for this particular tree. Hanging upside down and tied up by sticky web was a strange bald guy. His mouth was muffled by the same white sticky web that tied up his entire body. The guy was trying to scream something but it only came out as a muffle sound.

"Professor!" Aria said when Hasting managed to tear his eyes away from the sight and look at Aria as though wanting some answers. "After Lunick left (not on my watch by the way), I tried to go after him but the tunnel collapsed and it'll take all week just to clear it up." As if to prove her point, two Fall rangers behind her were trying to move a boulder. One of the rangers's lost their grip and the rock came smashing down on his foot. Swear words could be heard quite distinctively in the background.

"All right Aria," Hasting sighed in exhaustion. He wished Joel was here instead. He was better at leading than Hasting was. "Let's first get this guy back to the police station for some questioning and have some stay behind to clear the tunnel."

"Oh, professor, by the way," Aria said, remembering something, as she took a piece of paper, neatly folded in fourths, from her pocket. "This letter was attached to this guy's head." Hasting took the note and opened it carefully. He immediately knew who wrote the letter in such childish and messy handwritings.

"_Dear Professor Hasting,_

_I want to let you know that me and Wes have decided to leave. We're not going to just sit around and hope for the best like you want us to do._

_We've encountered this guy who seems to have information Wes thinks is important for you to know. Anyways, Wes asks that you inform us if this guy mentions anything suspicious._

_Don't tell Spenser!_

_From Ranger Lunick and his partner, Minun._

_PS. I wasn't the one who put sleeping pills in your coffee. Wes did it."_

On the very bottom of the paper, Lunick, thinking that would brighten the mood, drew three chibi heads – two depicted Lunick and Minun smiling while the third one depicted a grumpy looking Wes with a small frown on his face. Professor Hasting couldn't help but smile and laugh.

"This is so like Lunick," Hasting said, chuckling, putting the paper into his lab coat. "Anyways, we'll just let those two go. I'm sure those two are fine together."

"Professor!" Aria said, shocked at Hasting's lax face. She was expecting a more serious tone from the man but then again, Joel was the one who always act responsible. "This is not a laughing matter!"

"Well no," Hasting admitted, "But I'm sure those two are fine. Those two are resourceful. Why don't we worry more about the – ah – present they gave us instead?"

"But," Aria protested, wanting to follow regulations and go after the two troublemakers. Rules should be followed to the book. Breaking the rules of a Ranger gave a bad reputation to the Ranger society. "They should be brought back and punished for disobeying their orders!" Hasting shrugged his shoulders, not interested in punishing as much as Aria was.

"Ah, but both of them were willing to break the rules to save their friends," Hasting said, stroking his short beard thoughtfully, "I'm pretty sure we can cut them some slack."

"Professor," Aria sighed in resignation. There was no point in arguing against someone who has the same amount of sense inside of them as Lunick. "How can you be sure they're okay? For all we know, they could be trapped in the cave."

"Well, like I said," Hasting said, grinning, "they're resourceful. Anyways, I'm going to go and get something to eat. See you later!" With that, Hasting walked back into town, leaving Aria in charge with the other Fall rangers – all of whom were confused and waiting for orders.

Aria felt like slapping the palm of her hand to her forehead. Hasting was the head researcher of the Capture Styler and probably the most irresponsible person ever. It looks like she'll have to take charge from now on.

The first thing she was going to do after she fixed this mess was find Lunick, dragged him back to Fall City, and then make him feel pain beyond his imagination.

…

The first thing Lunick noticed when he opened his eye was sunlight streaming past the leaves from the tree branches. He was on his back and his arm and legs were sprawled out. The heat was slowly creeping up from the grass. Lunick slowly blinked several times as his mind tried to remember what was going on. Sure enough, everything that happened last night came rushing back.

_Man, what a night_, Lunick thought as he used the back of his hand to cover his eyes from the sunlight. So much stuff happened last night that the information seemed to be exploding inside of his head.

"You awake?" Lunick turned his head around and noticed Wes, away from the tree's shadow. He was watching a fire and had mushrooms lined up on sticks. Lunick could immediately tell that lunch (he tried not to grimace at the blackened fungus) was being prepared. He slowly got up, trying to regain energy. He noticed Minun right next to him, sleeping in the exact position Lunick was in.

"You guys are so alike," Wes said, noticing Lunick poking Minun for the fun of it, "No wonder you guys are partners." Minun snored in its sleep and tried to swat away Lunick's finger. Lunick grinned and giggled while Wes rolled his eyes before turning back to watch and control the fire. With Lunick, it was like taking care of an overgrown five year old.

"How long have I been out?" Lunick asked, stifling a yawn and stretched his arms high into the air. There was a small breeze going and relaxed Lunick immediately. He walked over to Wes and noticed that the guy was staring into the fire, as though he was looking at his thoughts inside the flames. His amber eyes glowed like hot coals.

"More than seven hours," Wes said. "We managed to get out of the tunnel safely though that place is now caved in. It's a good thing though since no one will be coming after us from that direction. You fell unconscious and I was in no shape to carry you. Therefore, I decided to set up camp. However, we lost a good portion of time so the best thing to do is to get recharged quickly before leaving."

"You can cook?" Lunick said, shocked. Wes didn't look like the type who can cook, then again, the stuff he was cooking didn't look like edible food. The mushroom didn't look too tasty either. Lunick grabbed one of the sticks and started to chew on the rubbery mushrooms. Definitely not tasty. He wanted to gag but Wes narrowed his eyes as thought to say 'If you're going to complain about the food then don't expect me to cook for you next time.' Lunick gave a hasty gulp, smacked his lips, and rubbed his stomach. "Delicious." Lunick made a mental note to carry food packages in his Ranger pack next time.

"Yeah, I can cook," Wes said, answering Lunick's question. He looked up at the clouds and had a misty look in his eyes – as though he was recalling all his troubled past.

Lunick wanted to pry more answers out of the stubborn trainer. Wes was definitely not someone who can be judged by the cover. Lunick started to chew on another mushroom and made a face of slight disgust…"Where did you learn to cook?"

"Prison." This time, Lunick choked on his mushroom.

"Yeah," Wes continued, ignoring Lunick's coughs, "I learned it as one of my 'reform' classes. It was actually interesting."

"P-prison?" Lunick repeated, not listening to a word Wes said.

"Yeah," Wes repeated, surprised at Lunick's shocked face. "What's wrong with that?"

"You, you been in prison?" Lunick waved his stick around as though to emphasize his shock.

Wes shrugged his shoulders. "I don't have a pretty past if that's what you're wondering. Most of the people have been in prison at least one time in their life."

"And that's a good thing? That all of you are criminals?" Lunick didn't mean to make it sound like that but it was already too late. Wes' eyes flashed dangerously, though not as dangerously as last night when he pinned Lunick against the wall.

"Orre is not a utopia world," Wes stated flatly, "The word 'government' doesn't even exist except in catching criminals. People break rules and get punish but no one tries to fix the system."

"Why not?" Lunick demanded. Wes stared incredulously at Lunick but the ranger continued on to lecture the thief. "You obviously don't like how things work, so why not try to get together and fix it?" There was a heavy silence that was only broken by the sounds of crackling fire.

"The real world doesn't work like that. And you still ask too many questions," Wes stated flatly and looked away – apparently done answering questions. He reached over and petted (Lunick just realized the Pokemon was there this whole time) Espeon who was sleeping while sunbathing.

Espeon looked a lot better than last night. Its purple fur glowed and sparkled underneath the sunlight and the Pokemon had a peaceful look on its face. Espeon was obviously well taken care before and there was sense of strong power beneath the beauty. Next to Espeon was the dark Pokemon – Umbreon. It too was sleeping and seemed to have a sleeping beast slumbering within it. Wes obviously took good care of his Pokemon and valued their lives. So why was it that he acted like two different people?

"Any ideas where to go next," Wes asked, breaking through Lunick's deep thoughts. Wes was obviously trying to change topics and focus back on the rescue mission.

"Huh? Oh, ummm," Lunick frowned, looking at his surroundings and trying to picture a map inside of his head. He noticed that they were a mile or two away from the tunnel they escaped. "It should be a thirty minute walk to get to the main part of Lyra forest. If Spenser was right, then your friend Rui should be there."

"We'll get there in ten," Wes said, puzzling Lunick as to what Wes meant by that. Lunick was about to ask but Wes, who picked up his own stick and stared at the mushrooms a bit, turned to Lunick. "Hey, my turn to ask a question."

"Huh? Uh, what is it?" Lunick asked, surprised at the role switching. He took another bite of mushroom and for some reason Wes looked apprehensive at the fungus.

"Are those mushrooms I picked for you to eat are poisonous?"

…

Murph panted as he peeked through his hiding spot – a large bush. Those darn people were still after them. His bulging red jacket and Ranger uniform was covered with sweat and the heat wasn't helping at all. He turned to see the hostage rescued shivering, but not from being cold. The girl's blue eyes were filled with fear but she was obviously trying to be brave for now.

The girl had orange hair tied up into small pigtails that stuck out from the side of her head. She had a long jean jacket over her purple tank top and had a short mini skirt. She wore pink boots with black socks. The girl was obviously not wearing the ideal clothes to run in but then again, she probably never thought she would be running away from maniac people.

"Are you okay?" Murph whispered, make sure the coast was clear.

"Yeah," Rui nodded but still looked worried. "Are you sure we can get out of here safely?"

"Of course," Murph said, trying to sound cheerful, but deep down was scared. Murph didn't want to admit this but he was hopelessly lost. Lyra Forest wasn't exactly people friendly. Mazes and dead ends were everywhere. Trying to find the exit was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

"Th-that girl, Solana," Rui said. She had been holding back this whole time but now, she felt like she had to ask, "Is she going to be okay?" Murph gulped in fear. He remembered how he was supposed to stand guard while Solana went in to check out the factory. Suddenly, somewhere in the factory, a large explosion occurred and before Murph could really react or panic, Solana came out and brought the mysterious girl with her.

_Contact Spenser and get out of here! I'll try and hold them off!_

Murph had done what Solana had told him to do but Solana hasn't returned yet. Murph's worst fear was starting to creep up on him.

"Don't worry. Solana is the toughest Ranger around."

…

_Somewhere within Lyra Forest…_

The large dome like room was dark and appeared to be made entirely of marble. It seemed to be deserted at first glance; yet, if one looked carefully, he would notice four white marble chairs arranged in a semicircle and were more than twenty feet tall. If the person looked higher, he would notice that four human shadows can be depicted – one on each chair. They were all sitting in and looking down, as though they were going to judge the very soul that would dare to enter the room. Right now, it was deadly quiet, yet the four seemed to be waiting for something. All of them were looking at the large white marble door as if willing for it to open.

As though to answer their plea, the door immediately opened wide, giving a booming echo. Several bald headed grunts that had headphones and wore red vests came in. They lined up like military style. Immediately, a large, almost seven feet tall, person came in. The man looked as though he was made to be a wrestler and he was obviously the leader of this pack of headphone group. The man's muscles bulged and his small red sleeveless vest couldn't hide the large abs underneath. He had a permanent crooked teeth frown on his face and a brown electric shape mustache and eyebrows that defied gravity despite their long length. He had his strong and powerful arms crossed against his bare chest. His wrists were covered by large purple cloth. His black pants had many tech gears on the belt.

The man stared up defiantly at the shadows sitting above him as though he was not afraid to face the wrath of the gods.

"My, my, my, Gonzap," a cold and callous male voice finally said to the large wrestler. The voice, unperturbed by the large man's appearance, echoed through the room, giving it a chilling effect, "What brings Team Cipher such honor to have Team Snagem pay a personal visit here?"

"My men," Gonzap said, cutting to the chase and ignoring the voice's sarcastic tone, "have been suffering problems and setbacks." He didn't need to say anymore. The four people in front of him already knew what he was talking about. "I can't work together with that stupid group."

"The Go- Rock Squad?" the voice asked, though the question wasn't really necessary. "I suppose they are a bit on the dim side but your men were in charge of the operation. They work however you want them to. And some of your men work for them. I don't see Go-Rock Squad complaining as much as you do. Besides," the voice sounded dead serious now and the chill seemed to amplify in the room, "You allowed our prisoner to escape so easily even though Snagem were the only ones guarding here."

"You expect me to succeed that easily?" Gonzap snapped. He was definitely in a foul mood. He looked ready to break something.

"Now lookie here," another voice said from above. This one sounded playful and monkey like. "Dat's not our problem if you have setbacks. However, if you can't get da results we want, then it becomes our problem. You have a job so do it correctly." The voice then gave a loud laugh and slapped his thigh with his hand as though he just cracked up a joke.

"Moving on," another voice cut in, this time female. The tone of her voice made her sound like an incredibly vain woman. "Have you brought the intruder?" Gonzap, who was determined to redeem himself, nodded and motioned his hands to the people behind. His men dragged a young turquoise hair girl to the middle of the room. She was gagged and bound by the arms and legs. Her red jacket was ripped and looked like she just received a cruel beating. The girl looked as though she was close to unconsciousness.

"Oh my," the female voice said, feigning shock, "this is the intruder. Your men couldn't take care of this one girl? And I thought we hired professionals." The monkey voice immediately started to laugh at the female's sarcastic joke. Before Gonzap could start yelling, the fourth and final voice of the group interrupted.

"Enough. What do we do with the girl?" The male voice grunted and spoke in a really deep voice that rumbled. The four Team Cipher Admins fell silent as though judging the punishment of what to do.

"Dispose her," the cold voice replied, no hint of pity laced in it, "We have no use for her."

"Or do you?" The new voice caused many heads to turn and notice a shadow leaning against the side wall in the room. Apparently, the shadow had used the door next to him to silently walk in. He had on a large coat that made him look like part of the royalty's military. He had short cut white hair and was obviously in his late fifties if not older. Gonzap couldn't see clearly in the dark, but he immediately knew who it was.

"Now this is definitely a surprise," the cold voice said, actually having a hint of amusement, "The leader of Go-Rock Squad, what brings you here?"

"To perhaps give you another chance to retrieve the prisoner that managed to escape." The Go-Rock Squad didn't mention Gonzap's failure but he might as well have because Gonzap was fuming with a desire to punch the old senile man. Gonzap couldn't believe that it was this man who managed to combine to the three organizations together – his genius plan to combine their powers.

"This young lady," the old man explained, "is a Pokemon Ranger. She is an important person and I wouldn't be surprised if we can get a bargain trade, perhaps even for something we need. Threats are the only thing needed to get what you want when you live in Fiore." There was thoughtful silence before the cold voice replied – this time happy.

"Very well," the young cold male voice said, "we'll keep her prisoner here. Gonzap, take this young lady to her, ah, room." There was a note of finality in the voice and Gonzap knew he couldn't argue back. He motioned his men to take the silent prisoner back to her confinement. He gave a nasty look at the leader of Go-Rock Squad before leaving with his men.

"Gonzap is very angry," the female voice said, pointing out the obvious.

"No surprise," the deep voice rumbled in reply, "He likes to be in charge... and he hates failures"

"Ha, ha, ha!" The monkey voice laughed, "Well, with us here, he is the bottom part of da totem pole."

"Still, he is useful," the cold voice said, "However, his captured man and the cave in are problematic. I can't trust the loyalty of his men. We need to move faster if we're to succeed. I suggest we start working on phase two." He addressed the last part to the man below.

"But of course," the leader of Go-Rock Squad said, "The puzzle pieces are now finally falling into place. Soon, Fiore will be bowing down to a new power."

**Author's Notes**

Well now. We're finally getting to the main evil mastermind plan of this entire story. :D

By the way, I have no idea how these evil people sound like (evil I suppose), so I'm simply making it up. Hopefully, they are like as they are depicted in the games.

Okay important news.

I have school right now, so updates are obviously going to be slower. Please be patient and don't worry. The story will not be discontinued unless I announced it.

Also, I have a poll set up. Please let me know if you like long or short chapters.

Finally, for those who read DP Time Travel, I have made a new story that is the prologue to the DP story. Check it out if you want.

Let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**amichap**

**hydro-serpent58**

**littlmidget123**

...

Okay that's it from me.

See you in the next chapter. :D

**-JapanDreamer**


	7. I Owe You

**Disclaimer: I can't own Pokemon.**

Hey guys, sorry for the delay. I had a hard time writing this. So much action. XP Plus, I had a few midterm exams (And still more) so I've been pretty busy. To make it up, this chapter is super long.

Anyways, enjoy!

**Chapter 6:**

"How long are you going to keep doing that?" Wes asked, annoyed as Lunick made another reacting noise. Lunick's fingers were in his mouth and the back of his throat as though he was trying to pull the mushrooms he had eaten out of his mouth. Both of guys were riding on back of Dodrio (who Luniick still called by the name of 'Drumstick' by the way) with Wes in the front and Lunick in the back. Minun was sitting on top of Dodrio's middle head and looked like it was thoroughly enjoying the nice view a lot. It's little ears flapped with the wind.

They crossed the grassy plains with such ease and with a good amount of speed. Wes was right. At this rate, they'll get to the forest in less than ten minutes. The large dirt road that was dotted with green grass was wide enough for a car to travel through. Wes was leading the way to make sure Dodrio won't go berserk again since he obviously had experience with this. Of course, it took quite a while for Wes to fully control riding Dodrio since he never rode on a Pokemon before.

Lunick said to simply follow the dirt path until it diverged into two and from there, Lunick would give further instructions. It was already noontime and the sun was blazing and with very thick white clouds hovering beside it. However, it was definitely hot today and no wind blowing.

"When I'm absolutely sure that I managed to throw up every single bit of mushroom you tried to poison me with!" Lunick snapped. His face was slightly green and he didn't feel really good. Of course, Wes did eat the mushroom and was perfectly fine and to him, Lunick was overreacting too much.

"You only started to throw up after I asked you that question," Wes said, his eyes rolling with annoyance as though Lunick was the one who got himself into the mess. "I asked to be safe."

"Yeah, well, tell me that before you try to feed me," Luinck said before flopping to the side again. "Or you try the stupid mushrooms before giving it to me."

Wes rolled his eyes and continued to carefully lead Dodrio down the path. It was a while but Wes finally noticed that a large shadow was coming from the horizon. As Dodrio continued to run, Wes realized that the shadow was actually a large forest.

"Miii! Miii!" Minun squealed, pointing to the forest.

"Hey! Lunick said, looking excited for once, "We're almost there!" Dodrio, sensing the excitement, squawked and sprinted faster down the path until Wes pulled on its neck and ordered it to slow down.

Wes skillfully landed down while Lunick did it a bit more ungracefully and almost crashed. Minun slid down Dodrio's neck and hopped onto Lunick's head. Wes, ignoring Lunick, took out his Poke ball and aimed it at Dodrio.

"Return," Wes said and the Poke ball released a red laser that hit Dodrio and sucked it back into the Poke ball. Wes looked at the large dark forest for the first time in his life. The large trees seemed to create their own little time zone. There was a small river running between the border of the forest and where Wes and Lunick were standing. There was only one small wooden bridge over the river. The path going into the forest seemed to be less worn and wilder with weeds as though it was rarely used.

"So this is Lyra Forest," Wes said, but his tone sounded as though he wasn't convinced.

"Not a lot of people come here," Lunick explained, suspecting Wes' suspicion of the deserted place, "This particular place we're going to is called the Labyrinth Grove."

"A maze, huh?" Wes said, placing his hand to his chin as though contemplating on something, "We need to be prepare before we try to go in."

"Don't worry," Lunick said, grinning, "I know my way here and I definitely won't get us lost. I've been here before with… with Solana." Lunick's face fell when he said Solana's name and looked really depressed. Minun looked down from the top of the ranger's head, worried.

"Don't worry," Wes said, hoisting his stack, "You'll be able to save her."

"Yeah, I hope so," Lunick said, looking at the forest as though it was going to eat him up. "I hope Solana is still okay… oh, and your girlfriend too." Lunick said the last part with a sly grin.

"Girlfriend?" Wes repeated the word, sounding confuse but looking dead serious as always. It's as though he could not display any other emotion besides serious. "What are you talking about?" Lunick, however, gave a playful nudge at Wes' ribs.

"Ah, come on," Lunick said, "Don't be shy. I heard what those guys said about her." He quickly scampered off into the woods before Wes could 'retaliate'.

"Hey, hold on a second," Wes called out, but the ranger was already gone. The white hair boy simply stared at the ranger before groaning out of frustration.

_What a stupid guy… He doesn't even know where to look for the people we're trying to find._ Wes contemplated for a few minutes before deciding to run after Lunick. In a new place, Wes decided that sticking together was way better than splitting up.

…

"I could've sworn it was this way," Lunick said, puzzled as the two once again came across a dead end. So far, Lunick has been leading the way by following the dirt path. Unfortunately, the path didn't seem to help the two at all. They kept looping around and what's worse, they seemed to be going more in circles despite the fact that the path is straight. Lunick rubbed the back of his head as though trying to remember something.

"Well, seeing how we don't know where to look in the first place, it's not surprising you wouldn't know where to go," Wes said in a dull voice and sighing in a boring tone.

"Hey!" Lunick said furiously like an impatient child, "I'm doing the best I can! Besides this place is called the Labyrinth Grove for a reason!"

"Well first of all, do you even know where to look?" Wes said, pointing out the huge issue of the whole problem. "We know who we're looking for, but we don't know where." Lunick stared at Wes as though trying to comprehend a foreign language. "Take your time," Wes said in a bored voice, "It'll come to you."

"Err…" Lunick's brain was finally starting to comprehend the difficulty of the situation. After a full minute, everything clicked into place. "Oh man," Lunick sighed, "This was going to be a lot harder than I thought."

"You finally figured that out huh?" Wes said, in a monotone voice as he looked at his surroundings. The tall trees were blocking a lot of the sunlight. Although this made the area feel cool from the heat, the darkness was making it impossible to use the sun to determine where they are going.

"Okay," Lunick said, taking out his styler, "I'm going to capture some Pokemon and use them to scout the area. Maybe they've seen Solana and the others."

"Good, they obviously know more about this place than you do." Lunick didn't hear Wes mumbled this and was too busy trying to capture a swarm Beedrill that were hovering by. Wes couldn't help but watch the Capture Styler worked its magic as Beedrill, now listening to Lunick, flew off in search for their friends.

"What?" Lunick said, noticing Wes dull staring.

"You guys can simply get Pokemon to just obey you," Wes stated, "It's like capturing them in a Poke ball and then releasing them when you're done."

"We borrow their powers," Lunick said, sounding a bit offended at Wes' choice of words, "We prefer to work with nature, not use it for our own purposes. We ask for help, not demand it."

"What about Minun?" Wes said, sounding bored again, looking around the forest.

"Well, Minun is my partner," Lunick said, frustrated at the lack of knowledge most people have about Rangers. Lunick had to deal with a lot of people like Wes who seemed to find Pokemon Ranger job smiliar to a trainer's, only that rangers get to have more than six Pokemon to help them. There are so many different things about the two occupations but no one sees it in that way. "Minun helps me out but I don't own him. We're friends and that's why we stick together." Lunick and Minun pounded their chest. "We're bonded by heart and no one can take that away."

"Right…" Wes said absentmindedly. He had his PDA out and was looking at something and totally ignoring Lunick's speech. Lunick almost fell from frustration at the sight of Wes' lack of interest.

"What's with you?" Lunick said, "You act interested for one second and then out of it in another second." Wes didn't respond and continued to look at his PDA and causing Lunick to fume in more frustration.

"HEY!" Lunick yelled, grabbing the PDA from Wes' hand, "Will you listen to me for once?"

"Why?" Wes asked, trying to grab back his PDA but Lunick kept dancing it out of his reach. Wes sighed and gave up trying to get his PDA back. "And please stop screaming. We don't know if the enemy is here or not."

"_Why? _Cuz I was talking to you, that's why!" Lunick snapped, not listening to Wes' request. His voice was echoing the surroundings.

_Hypocrite,_ Wes though, looking annoyed. "Fine," Wes said, shrugging his shoulders, "I'll try and act more interested. Now will you please give me back my PDA?" Suddenly, Wes and Lunick heard a large swooping sound and looking up saw a large shadow charging straight at them.

"WAHHHH!" Lunick yelled but the large shadow landed on him and the ranger crashed to the ground from the weight. "Get it off, get it off!" Wes immediately tried to grab the large creature and almost fell back in surprise when he saw that it was a Ferrow. The large brown bird squawked as it continued to pin down Lunick.

"Stop right there! My Ferrow won't hesitate to attack your partner!" A voice shouted. Wes didn't even hesitate and threw out his Poke ball to where the voice came from. Immediately, Umbreon, with its red glowing eyes, came out of the Poke ball and was in attack position as the rustling of the bushes grew louder and a person came out from behind. To Wes' shock, the person had on the same red uniform like Lunick – a ranger. The man had a red jacket with yellow collar and a black jumpsuit with white top. Like Wes, the man was obviously prepared. His Capture styler out as though he was ready to use it.

"What?" The man gasped. His eyes widened with shock at the prey he had caught. His face came toward to the light and Wes suddenly realized who the person was – Spenser, Lunick's leader.

"You two?" Spenser said, his long green hair almost covered his shocked eyes if it wasn't for the white headband tied around his head. "What are you guys doing here?" Umbreon hissed at the hostility the man was giving off but Wes immediately crouch down and pet the black moonlight Pokemon to calm it down.

"Spenser?" Lunick said with shock. He was still stuck underneath Spenser's Ferrow who refused to move. Lunick's eyes were almost as big as saucer plates. "Wh-What are you doing here?"

"I believe that question should only be reserved for me," Spenser said, his eyes flashing dangerously at Lunick who gulped in fear. Spenser was overcoming his shock and was now starting to get angry. Minun, sensing danger, immediately ran and cowered behind the nearest bush. "Care to explain?" Spenser directed this question to Wes. However, Wes merely sighed and shrugged his shoulders.

"So you caught us," Wes stated. "Going to do something about it?"

"Why would you disobey a direct order?" Spenser demanded.

"Uh, Spenser," Lunick said in a very timid voice and raising his hand from Ferrow's feathers. "before we answer, can you let Ferrow get off of me?" This statement caused Ferrow to screech with anger as though Lunick's interruption was rude and unreasonable. Spenser simply responded by giving an 'I'll deal with you next' look at Lunick. "On second thought, I'll just wait," Lunick said, shutting up and putting his hand back down.

"Look," Wes said, wanting to get to the point, "We want to help too and not just sit around. The sooner I find Rui, the sooner I'll leave this place and leave you guys back to whatever it is you guys do."

"If you haven't notice, this place is dangerous. People can get lost easily and can never get out. Rangers don't even come here unless qualified or with a qualified ranger," Spenser said, his arms folded across his chest, "I want you to go back to Fall City and I'll come and deal with you two when I get back."

"Wait; hold on, Spenser, I'm not considered a qualified ranger to go into these forests?" Lunick interrupted again. Spenser gave another glare at Lunick who gulped again. "Okay, shutting up again."

"When you get back? More like if you can get back," Wes said without flinching under Spenser's gaze. "Do you know that the people you're dealing with are far worse than you could ever imagine. If you don't let me come with you then you're going to end up captured and then most likely dead." Lunick's heart pulsed faster at the word 'dead'. Wes wasn't the type who would joke and he definitely sounded serious – dead serious.

"You know these people that well?" Spenser demanded. This time Wes looked away and didn't answer. Spenser groaned and sighed. There was a moment of silence before he broke the silence. "What do you suggest?"

Suddenly, there was a sound of buzzing from overhead. Wes, Spenser, and Lunick looked up to see a Beedrill coming down and landing next to Lunick. Ferrow tried to jab the bug and caused it to buzz angrily and tried to jab the bird with its needle arms.

"What the-?" Spenser said.

"I think Beedrill found something," Lunick said as the bug Pokemon flew back to the direction it just came from. Wes immediately returned his Umbreon and quickly followed the Beedrill.

"Wait!" Spenser called out, but Wes was already out of sight. Spenser glanced at Lunick who grinned sheepishly. The Ring Town leader didn't have much choice of the matter and the fact that Wes already had a head start wasn't making things easier.

"Lunick, I'm giving you permission to join this mission," Spenser said finally. He motioned the large Ferrow to get off and the bird flew into the air and followed after Wes and Beedrill.

"Really?" Lunick said happily as he got up. Minun, who felt like it was safe now, came out of hiding and jumped onto Lunick's shoulder. Although the two were relieved from not getting any punishment, Spenser didn't give off the same emotion. Lunick's smile shrank and the teenager immediately decided that the best thing to do was to pursue Wes. Spenser followed the young ranger from behind.

"_But_," Spenser said in a serious tone, "your job is to only keep an eye on Wes and back him up if need be. Remember this time to follow my orders. Make sure he doesn't run off when I tell you guys not to."

"What?" Lunick gaped. "But I want to help!"

"When Murph contacted me, he told me the situation was serious and dangerous," Spenser said, "You should not be here but considering the situation, I have no choice."

"Bu-"

"No buts," Spenser interrupted, "I don't want to lose any more rangers." Lunick fell silent at these words and the two continued to follow Ferrow as its bird eye view managed to keep an eye on Wes.

"I want an answer Lunick," Spenser said. Lunick sighed but nodded.

"Sir, yes sir."

…

Deep within the forest, things weren't going so well for Murph and Rui. Both of them were running as fast as they could but seemed to progress less than before. Worse of all, Rui and Murph had been spotted earlier and had been running blindly through the woods before realizing they were even more hopelessly lost once they lost the pursuers.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Rui asked again to Murph who looked so hopelessly lost. To Rui, the trees looked exactly the same but Murph said that there was a way to figure it out.

"Unfortunately no," Murph said, though he seemed to be pretty dim about the situation. He was panting and sweating a lot. Several times, Rui thought that Murph was going to collapse from exhaustion. "Solana is the only one out of all of us rangers who actually know this place well enough to not get too lost."

"Oh great," Rui groaned, wishing her partner was more serious. She shivered at the sight of this forest. It gives her the creeps. Surely one of these pathways would lead them back out of here but it seems to be simply making them go around and around in circles no matter where they choose to go.

"Sigh, I wish I was better at using my Styler," Murph sighed as he looked at his surrounding and hoped he found some sort of landmark that would lead them out of here. "I'm totally stupid and useless in times like these."

"Don't say that," Rui said in a stern voice as though she didn't like this negative vibe Murph was now giving off, "We managed to lose them and so far we're doing great. Remember, you're my knight who has come to rescue me." She clenched her fists and said, "We just need to think positive and we'll get out of here soon. Nothing bad can happen anymore."

"There they are!" Rui and Murph suddenly realized a couple of bald Snagem members pointing at their direction. Murph gaped from the irony of the situation.

"Or maybe they can," Rui said as she froze from shock at the sight of the men. "Run!" Rui and Murph once again started to crash through the bushes and the path. Rui pulled Murph along as the bumbling boy stumbled behind.

"You won't get away this time!" A voice cried out and that only made Rui run faster. When she managed to get into a clearing, it was then that Rui realized that she was trapped. There were three Snagem members already waiting for them. Next to them were some wild Spinarak and Scyther and some Wrumple who were (to Rui) strangely obeying the Snagem members' orders. Rui skidded to a halt and tried to run in away but the pursuers from behind already caught up. They were now trapped.

"Told you wouldn't get away," one of the Snagem guy said and gave a toothy grin at Rui. "Why don't you surrender your pretty self now?"

"Forget it," Murph said, trying to act tough, but there was a definite quiver in his voice. He raised his shaky arms as though to shield Rui from the bad guys. The members gave crackling laughs at Murph's attempted bravery and gave an evil grin. The bug Pokemon started to creep closer and Rui's blue eyes seemed to quiver with fear. None of these Pokemon carried a dark aura around them, but the sight of the hostility still send a chill down the girl's spine.

"Fatty, I suggest you don't try and act like the hero today. Unless you don't care about what happens to that other pretty girl of yours." The man said, still giving a crackling laugh.

"Solana?" Murph said, not believing what he just heard. _They got Solana._

"Murph, no," Rui said in a very small and scared voice. For the first time during this whole run in the forest, she was acting scared – really scared. Her blue eyes were close to tears. "Don't try to fight. I don't want the same thing to happen to you."

"But this is my mission," Murph said, despite the obvious disadvantage he was in. "A ranger does not abandon his mission for the sake of his own self."

"I see," the man said, cocking his head to the side. "Well in that case, I suggest you get ready to see your life come to an end." The Scyther next to him sharpened his blade arms together and making a 'shik' sound that cut through the still air.

"NO!" Rui yelled, but the man's Scyther raised its arm, ready to swipe. Rui immediately closed her eyes, not wanting to see the horror about to lay out.

"Espeon, Psychic!" Immediately, a blast of purple waves slammed into the Scyther. Rui opened her eyes and saw a purple cat like fox in front of her and facing against the Snagem's Pokemon. Rui immediately recognized the Pokemon who had just saved Murph and her.

"E-espeon?" Rui gasped, not believing her eyes. The Pokemon gave a purr in reply. If Espeon is here, then that means… that voice…

"Rui, are you okay?" Rui turned around and saw the ghost of Wes standing before her. His white hair seemed to glow strangely in the forest light. His blue trench coat had the same worn out look and his silver plated goggles were perched on his forehead. Wes is… alive?

_This must be a dream_, Rui thought as she stared into Wes' amber eyes. He took a step forward until he was standing right in front of her. Immediately, as a surge of emotions filled her, Rui threw her arms around Wes and started to sob uncontrollably into his neck. The guy stood awkwardly as Rui continued to hug him. Murph stared questioningly at Wes who also looked confused – as though he has no idea why Rui was acting this way.

"Wes, Wes! It is you!" Rui sobbed as she clutched Wes' neck even more tightly. "I thought… I thought…"

"Well, I'm alive," Wes said as he slowly pushed Rui away from him. "Takes more than a beating to bring me down."

"No way!" One of the Snagem team members gasped and stared at the snowy white hair guy. "You're alive?" Scyther screeched in anger and charged straight at Espeon, but before the psychic Pokemon could retaliate…

"Ferrow! Take Scyther down!" Immediately a flying shadow slammed as fast as a bullet straight at the surprised Scyther who immediately got flown into the air.

"What the -?" The Snagem guy gaped as his other members looked around wildly for the intruder. Suddenly, from the bushes from behind the whole group, a man with uniform similar to Murph came out.

"Spenser!" Murph cried out in relief. It was Rui's turn to look shock at the newcomer but the guy barely seemed to notice her.

"Murph, move away!" Spenser said and charged up his styler toward the Scyther his Ferrow had taken down. With expert hands, Spenser's capture styler started to loop around the bug Pokemon in a bright blue light.

"Another ranger?" One of the men cried out in surprise. "What is going on?"

"Don't just stand there!" one of the men cried who managed to recovery from the shock. "Take them down!" Immediately, the rest of the team's Pokemon charged straight at the newcomer. However, Spenser seemed to be unfazed by this.

"Minun, paralyze them!" Another voice cried out. Immediately, blue electricity spread through the area, paralyzing the Team Snagem's Pokemon. Before, the others could react; another Capture Styler came out and started to follow the same process as Spenser's on another Pokemon.

"Lunick!" Murph gasped in shock as he saw Lunick coming out from behind Spenser.

"Murph! Hurry up and help!" Lunick called out and Murph pulled out his styler. Feeling confident now that Lunick and Spenser were here, Murph helped out with the capturing. Immediately, all of the wild Pokemon were soon released from Snagem's spell and ran away, back into their natural habitat.

"I suggest you surrender now," Wes said staring at the Snagem members with pure hate. Espeon growled with an anger that it rarely showed. Rui's heart pounded faster as she watched Wes with admiration.

"Geez Wes," Lunick said, rolling his eyes, "Do you have to say the cool line everytime?"

"Damn! Retreat!" Immediately, the men started to scatter away like frightened Buneary.

"Wait!" Lunick cried, looking around as though someone was missing from the group, "Where is Solana!" Spenser looked as though he knew the answer to that question.

"Lunick! Murph!" Spenser ordered, "You stay here with everybody else. Do not move from this spot!"

"What? But Spenser!" However, the Ring Town's Ranger leader and his Ferrow pursued the scattered Snagem members and disappeared into the forest's depth.

"Murph, where is Solana?" Lunick asked, his voice had a definite panic tone. Murph immediately looked down and ashamed. "Murph!"

"Wes," Rui interrupted, "Who is this guy?" Lunick looked around and widened his eyes with shock. Minun, who was standing next to Lunick, was also gaping in amazement. Lunick was not expecting this Rui girl to be this, well, hot. Rui stared uneasily at Lunick's gaping face and looked questioningly at Murph who merely shrugged his shoulders.

"You're Rui?" Lunick sputtered with shock. How did Wes manage to get such a cute girl to follow him around?

"Yes," Rui said, annoyed that everybody knew her but she didn't know them. "And who are you?"

"I'm Lunick," the ranger said. "I helped bring Wes here to save you."

"Really?" Rui said, blushing red at the thought of Wes saving her and turned to Wes, "Did you really come all this way to save me?" However, Wes was returning his Pokemon and didn't look like he had a care in the world as to what was going on.

"Come on Rui," Wes said, "We need to get back to Orre."

"What?" Rui said.

"What?" Lunick repeated.

"Umm, is anybody going to introduce me?" Murph said, pointing to himself.

"Don't care who you are," Wes said snappishly.

"Hey, take that back," Lunick said, defending Murph.

"Lunick, it's okay," Murph said, not wanting another fight to start. Wes rolled his eyes in annoyance but grabbed Rui by the arm. Lunick blocked, Wes' path to leave and crossed his arm. "Wes, apologize to Murph." Wes glared at Lunick for a moment before turning toward the chubby ranger.

"Thanks for helping to rescue Rui," Wes said, looking at Murph, and then turned back to Lunick "But we need to go. Now."

"Hold on!" Lunick said, still not budging, "What about Solana?"

"Who?" Wes said.

"Solana is a ranger who rescued me," Rui explained to Wes before Lunick replied, "She is captured by those Snagem guys."

"Wait, she's captured?" Lunick said, shocked at the new piece of information. "Are you sure?"

"That's what they said," Murph said, looking very worried and starting to panic. Lunick turned toward Wes.

"Wes, you know these people right?" Lunick said desperately.

"Get to the point," Wes said, annoyed with Lunick's questions.

"Wes, you have to help me save her! You said that the place is dangerous. Spenser needs our help if we're going to save her. With your help, we can rescue Solana and catch these criminals."

"No." There was a sudden halt of silence as though Wes just slapped Lunick across the face.

"What?"

"No," Wes stated again flatly. He was dead serious and his eyes seemed to glow with anger at all of the complications that were being thrown at him. "I'm not interested in getting caught up in this situation any longer. Your friend is your problem, not mine. Rui and I are leaving and that's that." He pushed Lunick to the side and started to walk away.

"Hold on a minute!" Lunick grabbed Wes' arm, but the guy immediately shove Lunick, this time hard enough to the ground.

"Wes!" Rui said, but the guy simply turned his back and continued to walk away. Lunick's burning hatred grew as Wes moved farther away. The selfish guy was leaving – leaving as though he didn't care what happened now.

"You're just like those guys!" Lunick yelled. Wes stopped in his trap as though Lunick had suddenly slapped him with those words. "You take what you want and then throw away the people who helped you!"

"Oi, Lunick," Murph said, grabbing Lunick's arm, "Calm down."

"YOU OWE ME!" Lunick yelled, pushing Murph away. He felt angry tears bursting from his eyes but managed to hold it back.

"Wes," Rui said, lightly touching his arm – just enough to get his attention. There was a moment of silence through the whole group as though waiting for Wes to say something.

"Fine." Lunick looked up. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Fine," Wes said again, looking straight at Lunick, "I owe you."

**Author's Notes**

Whoo! A very long chapter for you guys!

Anyways, I can't really thank reviewers at this time but thank you all who reviewed.

I'll see you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	8. Two Different Sides of the Story

**Disclaimer: If I owned Pokemon, would I be writing my stories on fanfic?**

I'm BACKKKKK! :D

Lol. Sorry, but I'm so excited! My finals are finally over and I'm having a blast in not studying. I've been throwing my hands in the air and screaming for quite a bit.

I had fun writing this chapter but there is not a lot of action yet. I'm saving that up for the next chapter. XP

Moving on, I just want to let you know that since my winter break is here, I'll be updating more often. Chapters might be a bit shorter but they'll come faster so I guess that is still good.

Anyways, enjoy!

**Chapter 7:**

"It seems that we have intruders," the woman's voice said after the Snagem member left when he delivered the news. This time, there was enough light in the dark and cold room to reveal that she was had long brown hair with corkscrew bangs that hung at the sides. The bottom of her face was covered by a pink silk, making her look like some sort of Arabian princess. Her brown eyes were filled with a haughty look.

"So it would seem…" the cold and calculating voice replied. This came from the sharp looking man with purple shades and a strand of black hair that stuck out like some sort of spring.

"Hehehe," the monkey voice said, "Now things are getting interesting again." This came from the man with a large red and white afro. His retro looking goggles made it impossible to see what color his eyes were. "I was getting bored after we caught that little thief earlier."

"Be careful Miror B.," the low rumbling voice of the final person. He had wild reddish brown hair that made him look wild. His muscular face was expressionless as though it took too much effort to make any sign of emotion. "Wishing for too much excitement will lead to problems."

"Cha, cha, cha," Miror B. said to the giant Tarzan looking man, "You're no fun at all Dakim. Where is your sense of excitement for complications?"

"But… the most interesting piece of information is about the boy," the cold calculating man said, interrupting his colleagues' conversation. He rested his arm on the arm rest and placed his head on top of his head. "Guess he is here to try and stop us." Of course the man used the word 'guess' loosely. He knew what was going on. Like the Grand Master of Chess, all the pieces placed were in the right place because of him. Sure there were unexpected moves like that ranger sneaking into their factory and releasing their hostage, but it didn't change the situation.

The woman covered her mouth with her long pink dress's sleeve and gave a stifled laughter. "Such a fool. He's playing right into our hand."

"Let him try," the black hair man said, looking at the woman, "After all, he is an important piece to our little game. In fact," the man grinned this time as though he thought of a good plan, "Let's give him a warm welcome when he comes…"

…

"Any ideas where this place is?" Wes asked Rui. The red hair girl shook her head as though she too was confused. Wes sighed in frustration. He should've followed Spenser when he had the chance and follow the direction where the place was. Or better yet, held one of those Snagem guys hostaged and beat the information out of him. Wes didn't even bother asking Murph. If Lunick had no idea how to navigate around this place, Murph certainly didn't.

"Do you remember anything about it? Anything?" Wes said, trying a different approach. If they had some sort of clue of what the place looked like, maybe they could figure out what exactly to look for.

"I-I guess, it was some sort of factory…" Rui muttered. "I remembered seeing smoke… and machines… I heard those when I was held there…" Smoke? Wes immediately frowned in confusion. Why would there be a factory here of all places? Wes remembered from last night that those two lackeys mentioned something about delivering new products… Could it be…?

"Something is not right," Wes muttered, shaking his head, feeling like he was missing a piece.

"Hey, you two love birds," Lunick yelled from the side, disturbing Wes and Rui, "Will you explain to me what we're going to do now?"

Wes sighed in frustration. How in the world did he end up in this situation? He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn't even hear the word 'love birds' that Lunick used. Rui, on the other hand, blushed red and immediately hit Lunick hard on the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" Lunick said but Rui merely turned her head away in embarrassment.

"Guys," Murph said, in a worried voice, "Should we get moving? We don't know if more people will come."

"Yeah," Wes said, ignoring Lunick as he continued to yell at Rui, "We need to find Spenser. No doubt, he managed to track down those people by now. We'll meet up with them at their base. First we need to find some open space."

"W-why?" Murph asked, surprised at Wes' confidence.

"Simple," Wes said as he pointed to the sky. "We're going to fly there."

…

_A couple of minutes later…_

"Hey," Lunick said from behind as Rui continued to ignore him. She continued to stare at Wes who was leading the way and was talking to Murph. The sound of rustling grass and fallen leaves crunched underneath her boots. Now that she wasn't trying to run away anymore, Rui was able to enjoy the scenery here. It was similar to her hometown – relaxing and peaceful. This would be a nice place to live.

_Wes is so cool_, Rui thought in her mind as she continued to watch him. He was having some sort of animated discussion with Murph. Wes was making sure that the mission will be successful. He is the type of guy you could rely on. "Hey, Rui!" Lunick yelled again. This time Rui managed to snap out of her dream like state.

"What?" Rui finally asked, looking completely annoyed. Lunick walked up and glanced at Wes for a second before whispering into Rui's ear.

"What do you see in that guy?"

"Huh?" Rui said, taken aback by the question.

"What do you see in Wes?" Lunick repeated, nodding in the direction that Wes was going. "That guy is the rudest person I've ever seen. Plus, he's a criminal!"

"He's not a bad guy," Rui said, defending Wes, "He's really nice."

"He wouldn't save Solana if she didn't save you," Lunick shot back. He remembered the cold uncaring eyes Wes expressed when asked for help.

"He saved my life," Rui simply said. There was a heavy silence as Lunick tried to digest this new piece of information.

"What?" Lunick said, after he managed to recover from his shock. Wes… saved her? _Well,_ Lunick thought, trying to think of something to make Wes still look bad, _he probably just so happened to save her because it collided with something he was going to do._

"I was captured by a couple of those guys back at Orre. Wes was the one who saved me and he saved me countless of times after that," Rui said as she looked up at the green leaves hanging from the trees as though she was reminiscing the past. "Wes… he may be a guy who doesn't want to ask for help from other people, but you have to understand, he had a pretty harsh life. He lost faith in the idea of trust. He lived his most of life by himself. He doesn't even trust anyone. It was hard enough for him to make new friends." Lunick fell silent and stared at Wes who was still talking to Murph. Even in the back, Lunick could tell that Wes was keeping his distance. A look of solitude rest in the guy's eyes.

_Don't ever tell me about consequences when you haven't sacrifice anything in your life!_ Lunick still remembered those words that Wes shouted at him in the tunnel. What in the world has Wes sacrificed that would make him turn like this?

"Anyways, don't be too hard on him," Rui continued as she looked down at her feet this time. She gave a side glance and a small smile. "He is just a guy who doesn't really know how to express his feelings."

…

"How did you meet Lunick?" Murph asked Wes. Wes knew that Murph was trying to be friendly but it was still kind of annoying. There was no point in making conversations like this. Still, it would be nice to be able to complain for once – especially on a guy he found perfect to complain about.

"When I came here," Wes said calmly, "Found him showing off his ranger gear to some tourists. It wasn't really hard to miss him." Wes decided not to go in further details about what happened after that.

"Heh, that's so like him," Murph grinned. "He always wanted to share his dreams to others."

"Dreams?" Wes repeated as though the word was foreign.

"Yeah," Murph said, "I heard he wrote seven letters, asking to join the Ranger base. Spenser was impressed at how much he wrote. Of course, he also said, it must've taken quite a bit of effort to write since Lunick is really bad at writing. There were a lot of crossing out and revisions."

"Wow," Wes said, not knowing what to really say, "That is quite a bit of dedication."

"Yeah," Murph said continuing, "He even came from a different region and still preferred to become a ranger over a trainer." Murph looked back at Lunick who was having some sort of conversation with Rui. "Lunick… His dream is to become the best ranger and help people. A goal he is still striving. Of course, he is a bit hard-headed but that's what makes him move forward."

"Really…" Wes said, looking back and seeing Lunick looking obnoxious as he was talking to Rui. "A dream huh…?"

"You sound a bit doubtful," Murph said, looking confused at Wes, "Don't you have a dream as well?" Wes fell silent for a moment and it seemed a while before he responded.

"No, I gave up on the idea of dreams a long time ago."

…

"Wow!" Rui said as she saw the large wide open meadow. Small buds of flowers dotted everywhere. The smell of fragrance filled the air. The blue sky seemed to be smiling upon them, allowing warm sunlight to shower on top of the land. "It's so beautiful!" _And very romantic…_ But Rui didn't say that last part. She looked over at Wes who looked relieved that they managed to find such an open space.

"Right," Wes said and pointed to Murph and Lunick, who was completely annoyed by the fact that he didn't understand why this was the spot they needed to be. "You guys can get good flying Pokemon right?"

"Huh?" Murph said.

"What?" Lunick responded. Both rangers looked at each other, puzzled by Wes' question. However, Wes didn't elaborate and simply pointed to their styler. "Get some flying Pokemon. Big enough to carry four people."

"What?" Lunick repeated, still not getting it, "Why?"

"Just do it," Wes groaned as he opened his bag.

"Can you explain why at least?"" Lunick retorted back.

"Come on Lunick," Murph said as he took out his styler. "We should hurry up."

"Why are you taking orders from him?" Lunick hissed so that Wes couldn't hear them. The two rangers moved a bit away. "He didn't even want to help us in the beginning!"

"Oh come on now," Murph said, grinning. "He's not a bad guy. Besides he is helping us now and is doing this to save Solana. Shouldn't we work together? At least for her sake?" Lunick paused and immediately frowned in frustration. Murph really stumped him this time.

"Tch, I still don't trust him," Lunick said stubbornly as he walked off, "Keep an eye on him Murph. I'll capture those Pokemon." Murph sighed as Lunick walked off. Figures that he would act like that, but at least he had skills. He, Murph, is still a level one ranger even though he is a senior. Even capturing simple Pokemon was hard enough for him. Murph looked over at Wes who was talking to Rui about something. Whatever it was, it sounded serious because Rui looked slightly pale and a bit frightened.

"Is something wrong?" Murph asked as he waddled over toward the two.

"Nothing really," Wes muttered but Murph could tell that the two were hiding something. "We just need to figure out a strategy in getting in. I highly doubt they're just going to let us waltz in."

"Oh," Murph said, a little bit uncomfortable. Wes sounded like he was a professional in this sort of thing and Murph was indeed curious as to what the plan might be. But Wes didn't elaborate and instead said, "Why aren't you helping out Lunick?"

"Wes," Rui said in a tone to signify Wes' rude remark.

"Well, um, I'm not good at capturing Pokemon," Murph said, though he didn't seemed to be too embarrassed about this – as though he was used to being asked this question many times. Wes, however, bore his eyes straight into Murph's small squinty eyes, making the ranger feel very uncomfortable. "You know, I'm just going to go check and see if Lunick is… well… yeah." And Murph hurried off, apparently more afraid of Wes than Lunick.

"Wes, that was kind of rude," Rui belittle the white hair trainer but Wes didn't say anything and turned back at Rui.

"Are you sure you didn't see any of those Shadow Pokemon?" Wes repeated in a softer voice, making sure Murph couldn't overhear them.

"Yeah," Rui said, looking worried instead of relieved. "I didn't see any. Even when they were coming after us. There might have been one or two that belonged to those Snagem people, but… that's not what you're asking about right?" Wes nodded, trying to formulate a general idea. Factory was made to build something but it wasn't like in Orre.

"Then that means the factory isn't producing Shadow Pokemon," Wes said slowly. "They are making something else… but what…?" Wes had a nagging feeling that he knew what it was but he decided not to share it yet. No need to make Rui more scared now. Plus he wasn't sure if it really is what he suspected.

"Is it something far worse than Shadow Pokemon?" Rui whispered, worried. "Wes, maybe we should tell them what we –"

"No," Wes said firmly, "We don't need more complications added to the factor."

"But, they need to know," Rui said, a hint of plead in her voice, "What happens if they-?"

"The less they know, the better. I'm sick and tired of having people trying to butt into my business," Wes said in a darker tone, signifying that the conversation was over. Rui gave a frustrated sigh and looked away. But when Wes turned his head in deep thought, Rui stole a glance at him. Rui knew what Wes really meant when he said that. The guy would rather take the burden by himself than give it to others.

"Then… what are we going to do…?" Rui said, after several minutes of silence.

"Well, first off, I'm going to need you next to me when we get in," Wes said.

"Huh?" Rui said, her face immediately red. "Need me?" Rui could feel her heart pounding faster.

"Yeah, there is something I need to figure out, but I'm going to need your help," Wes continued and paused a moment before adding, "You're the only one who can see them."

"Oh, yeah that's right," Rui said, feeling silly now. Of course that's what Wes really meant. She sighed and looked down at the grass so that Wes can't see her red face.

"YO!" Lunick yelled and Rui was glad that Wes looked away toward the direction of the sound. "I got what you asked for!" Right behind him were four Scyther and one flustered Murph. "Now what?" Lunick was obviously unhappy at the fact that Wes was taking charge of the whole situation.

"Now," Wes said unconcern at the hostility, "Let's fly."

**Author's Notes**

Hmm, I wonder how this will turn out. Now we learn a bit more about Wes and Lunick. I promise a huge major battle scene in the next chapter. In fact, it'll probably be two chapters of major battles. I will hopefully get the next chapter up by this month. Like I said, no school means more free time for me to write.

Anyways, let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**Jarkes**

**littlmidget123**

…

That's it from me.

I'll see you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	9. The Breakin, the Diversion, the Trap

**Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon**

Hey, what do you know? I wrote a lot for this chapter! Yay! Sorry for the wait but hey, it was a fast update. XP

Anyways, enjoy the chapter! As I promise, there is quite a bit of excitement and humor going on.

**Chapter 8:**

"You got to be kidding me," Wes muttered as he cling onto the Scyther's leg he was riding on. He was expecting something better like a bird Pokemon. At least transport so he can sit down, not dangle fifty feet in the air and expect everything to be okay. He watched his feet dangle below him and the trees with luscious leaves even further down. "This is the best flying Pokemon you have?" Wes' Scyther glared at him for a second and seemed to be slightly offended by the comment.

"Well sorry," Lunick yelled sarcastically from the right side of Wes, "But not a lot of flying Pokemon live here and those that do tend to be small since the tree branches here makes it difficult to fly high in the air. Therefore most flying types are either small birds or bugs." Minun, riding on top of Lunick's head, nodded in agreement. Wes closed his eyes as Lunick continued on about how ungrateful Wes was and how much effort and luck it took to gather this many Scyther together. The guy was so annoying…

"Come on!" Rui said, cutting off Lunick's speech. She too was holding onto Scyther but unlike Wes, Rui looked like she was having the time of her life. Of course, there was a bit of fear in her eyes but she was definitely enjoying this new experience. Murph, on the other hand, had both hands clinging tightly onto his Scyther and praying to every legendary Pokemon he could think of that he won't fall off and die. His piggy eyes were clamped shut tight as though the thought of looking frightened him.

"Both of you, quite complaining," Rui continued, "At least try to get along for now!" Lunick looked away from Wes while Wes gave Rui a 'You kidding me' look. Rui pouted but didn't try to encourage any more. No point in persuading two stubborn men to get along with each other.

But then something caught Wes' eye and he immediately turned to face the front. There in the horizon and past thousands of trees…

"Smoke," Wes said, loud enough for everyone to hear. Lunick looked up and saw that Wes was right. In the horizon, and in the middle of nowhere, there was black smoke curling up against the blue sky.

"Smoke?" Lunick repeated, "What is that doing there? What does that mean?"

"It means," Wes said quietly, willing his Scyther to move forward, "That we're going to get off soon."

…

After some insistence, Wes had everybody land a couple of miles away from the complex. Of course, landing itself wasn't easy and Lunick was ready to complain and all had not it been for the fact that Solana was in trouble and Wes was only doing this as a precaution. It wasn't easy to land on the ground thanks to the thick trees but with a bit of help from the Pokemon, all of them managed and sped off in the direction where the smoke came from.

"This is the place?" Lunick whispered, peeking through the bush that the four of them were hiding in. He saw a large, black, and tall building in front of him that seemed to tower to infinity though he knew for sure that the building was at least shorter than the trees surrounding it for the sake of being under cover. Still it gave a chilling look as though it was indestructible and some sort of indestructible fort.

"That's the place," Murph said, "I was waiting here when Solana went in." Lunick peered at the entrance and noticed that there were four guards in front. They were dressed in the same way – red vest, bald head, and headphones over their ears.

"How did Solana get past the guards?"

"There weren't any," Murph replied to Lunick. It was then that Murph realized the puzzling situation. "That's strange. Why are there people now?"

"Maybe," Rui said slowly, "they're upping their security now because I escaped." Lunick nodded. It does make sense. If things went accordingly, Spenser should be here soon as well. People should have already been notified of a possible break in.

However, Wes frowned for a different reason. Unlike the rest of the group, he was confused as to why there were _only_ four guards. Something was not right. The amount of guards does not add up to what he would've expected. If anything, there should be guards at ever spot. Yet why are there only four in the front? Was this some sort of trap?

"Hey, thief," Lunick whispered, breaking Wes out of his thoughts, "Any ideas how we're going to charge in?" Wes frowned but continued to look intently at the situation. They could take down the guards right there, but Wes would rather not take the risk of back up waiting in the shadows.

"First off, we're not going to charge in," Wes said calmly. "We need to figure out if there is a back door or not."

"But that'll take forever," Lunick hissed, "What kind of professional are you? I say we just barge in there and knock down anyone who gets in our way." Wes looked murderous now as though he was going to strangle Lunick when there was a huge commotion going on with the guards.

"Sound off!" Wes, Lunick, Rui, and Murph flinched and dodged back in the bushes. Surely they didn't hear the four of them conversing? "Switch guards!" The Snagem members, looking relieve, immediately marched back into the building and in their place were six people.

For a moment, Lunick thought that it was all over. There was no way now that they could take down six guards. At least that was what he was thinking until he saw who the new guards were.

"What the-?" Lunick almost gasped loud enough to give away our position had not Wes slapped his own hand over Lunick's mouth.

Standing in front of them now were six very colorful dressed people. They all worn amour that covered their entire body and even a helmet. In order from left to right, there was a red, a blue, a brown, a yellow, a purple, and a green. On the back of each of these amours was a pair of white elliptical shape wings. Overall, they looked like some sort of characters one would usually see in a children's cartoon show.

"We are the sextruplets!" The six cried in unison. "We strike terror through the land. We are THE HEXAGON BROTHERS!" The six shouted name of their group so loud that Lunick winced in pain from the throbbing of his eardrums.

"Sound off!" the red amour one cried. Immediately, the line dutifully started to shout the number they were in the line.

"One!" the blue amour said.

"Two!" the brown amour said.

"Three!"

"Four!"

"Five!" the green one said in finality. There was a pause for a moment in the air when suddenly; the six realized that something was wrong.

"Five?" The green amour one said, "Who are we missing?"

"That's impossible," the red amour said, "I could've sworn that all of us are here. Let's try again. Sound off!"

"One!"

"Two!"

"Three!"

"Four!"

"Five!" Again silence.

"Maybe I was wrong," the red amour said slowly as though he couldn't believe he was make such an error, "Well, whatever. We'll punish him later when he comes."

"Yeah!" The five other brothers shouted in unison.

"W-who are those people?" Lunick asked, trying very hard not to choke with laughter as he stared at the rainbow color uniforms in front of him. After seeing Wes and learning a bit about Orre from him, Lunick thought that people in Orre were dangerous evil looking thugs. Yet, it was as though these six rainbow brothers were trying to prove him wrong. Were there people from Orre that were this… this stupid?

Murph and Minun on the other hand were slowly counting the six guards as though they were confused as to why the numbers they counted (which was six) didn't add up to how the guards did.

"The Hexagon Brothers," Wes whispered as though he couldn't believe it. Of course the six weren't real brothers. More like six idiots who decided to form a little happy go-lucky club together. Was this luck that they are receiving now? Even if it was a trap, Wes knew that this was probably the quickest way to get in without sounding any alarms. By the time these stupid six brothers realized that there were intruders, it would be too late.

Wes grinned – a scheming grin. Rui knew that look. Whenever Wes looked like that, it means that it was time to plot deviously.

"There is a way to get in without wasting time," Wes said. The plan was already forming inside of his head. However, it would require bait. "But we're going to need Murph's help."

"Huh?" Murph said, looking shock as Lunick and Rui and Minun spun their heads toward the chubby and confused boy and then back at Wes as though he was some crazy lunatic. "HUH?"

…

The six dutifully stood in line, assuming that there were only five. And they would've thought there was only five the entire time had not been a voice that said, "I'm here, I'm here!" The six looked around and saw a plump and short guy running toward them. His small eyes made it look like he was asleep. And his outfit was completely different from theirs but that didn't really clicked in the Hexagon Brothers' minds yet.

"Sorry I'm late," the guy said panting, "I was on orders to check the perimeter when I got the call I was supposed to be escorting some people into our building and just came back. N-number six, reporting for duty!" Murph said the last part while saluting. There was an uneasy silence as the six guards looked at each other with uncertainty. Murph gulped and could feel his own fear growing. Wes told him that that was all he had to do but surely these people weren't that stupid. Even Murph could've figured out that something was -.

"Number Six!" the red amour guy said angrily, "You should let us know ahead of time instead of making all of us worried. You will be punished accordingly later." The other five nodded in agreement, not even a slight suspicion in their minds either.

"Uh, y-yes sir!" Murph said, saluting again. He couldn't believe it. He actually managed to do something useful for once.

"Don't be mad at him," a voice said from behind. It was Wes but hiding under a cloak that obscure his face from the six rainbow guards. Wes had made his voice deeper and more somber as though he was truly sorry for causing so much trouble for Murph. Wes' voice made it so hard to distinguish from his own that even Murph, for a moment, thought that someone else was hiding underneath. "It was my fault for not letting the authorities know that I was coming so soon." Behind Wes were Lunick and Rui. Both too were hiding under cloaks provided by Wes but their cloaks were a bit smaller, only covering their upper bodies, and couldn't completely hide their faces. Rui glanced sideways in hopes of the guards not seeing her face. She will not be the reason for them being caught now.

"You six are important guards right?" Wes said, "You have access to every part of the building. Surely you can spare some sympathy for the sake of a guest." Wes' compliments made the 'real' six Hexagon Brothers swell their chest with pride.

"That's right," the yellow amour one said, "We guard everything! Treasure rooms, that ranger prisoner we capture recently -" Lunick made some sort of small noise – "And the very leaders of this place themselves! They even give us the keys to everywhere!"

"I see," Wes said, allowing his voice to be filled with awe and amazement, "Well it is no wonder why they would trust. I mean, what is not there to trust?"

The red amour guy stared at Wes' appearance for almost a full minute before giving an approving nod. It didn't occur to the six of them that Lunick and Murph were wearing almost the same outfit and that in itself was suspicious enough.

"Very well," the guy said. "I, Resix, will go easy on my brother for the sake of you as our guest!" Lunick snorted with laughter at the word 'Resix' but managed to turn it into a somewhat convincing cough. Luckily, Resix and his brothers were too stupid to realize this and immediately moved to the side to allow Wes, Lunick, and Rui in.

"Opps," Wes said, bumping into Resix, "Sorry about that. Still tired from the journey." Resix nodded understandingly and motioned to his brothers.

"Let them in!" Resix said. The yellow and green amour opened the double doors electronically with a card to let the three in. The three walked calmly in, saying thanks along the way. Not a single one of them noticed a small Minun hanging on Lunick's back. Once all three were in, the doors slammed shut with a loud 'Boom!'

"Such a nice guy," they all murmured until Resix decided that guard duty needed to be focused now.

"Okay, sound off again!" Resix yelled.

"One!"

"Two!"

"Three!"

"Four!"

"Five!"

"S-six!" Murph said as the final count. Then silence fell and everyone stood perfectly still, watching carefully for any intruders. Murph gulped and looked above at the giant building before him.

_Wes, Lunick, Rui, please be careful!_

…

"I can't believe that actually worked," Lunick sniggered as he took off the hood on his cloak. They were now in a very dark hallway that was only lit by small tiny lanterns that were only bright enough to allow the person see only a couple of feet ahead of them.

"It is only because they are one of the most extremely stupid people on the planet," Wes said as he too took off his own cloak. "However, don't let your guard down now. Not everyone else is like them." He noticed that Rui was more hesitant and seemed to shiver at the fact she was in the building that kept her hostage. Bad memories were filling up in her mind no doubt. "Rui, don't worry. I have your back. Make sure to stay near me." Wes grabbed her hand and pulled her forward.

"O-okay," Rui said, feeling her entire face blushing. Lunick eyed this event with slight disgust but decided not to say anything.

"Will Murph be okay?" Lunick asked as he looked back. He was a bit unsure if it was such a good idea to leave his ranger friend behind with the enemy. Murph will have no way to defend himself if that happened.

"Don't worry," Wes said. He took out a Poke ball and revealed his purple Espeon. The Pokemon shook its head as though clearing its mind before waiting patiently for orders. "By the time they realize something is wrong, we'll already be out of here." He said this with so much confidence that Lunick decided to trust Wes on this one. They're going to have to if they want to save Solana.

"So, where to now?" Lunick asked. "Any ideas where Solana is being held?"

"Judging by the large complex of the building," Wes said, "I say the back and maybe on the highest level. They obviously don't want the prisoner to escape easily. It will be heavily guarded though so I'll have to come up with a plan." Wes immediately started to move forward. Rui and Lunick followed behind him just in case something came up from ahead.

"If we can get there," Lunick grumbled. "If you haven't noticed, there is no way we can simply break through all the doors."

"Of course," Wes continued as though Lunick had never spoken, "we'll need these." Wes held up a ring of shiny keys from his pocket.

"Where did you get that?" Lunick asked, shocked.

"Swiped it from that red power ranger," Wes said simply as he pocketed the keys back into his blue trench coat.

"One day," Lunick muttered, shaking his head in disbelief, "You have got to show me how you do that."

"Oh?" Wes said, raising one of his eyebrows, "Interested in changing careers?"

"What?" Lunick said, feeling insulted, "No!"

"Shhh!" Rui said, "Keep it down." Slowly and carefully, the three moved in silence, making sure that no one will notice that they are here.

…

They had many close calls. Apparently, the deeper they went in, the more guards were on alert. And the more the hallways turned into mazes. There were times when they had to backtrack because the risk was too high. Of course, Wes, the best thief of the three, managed to create small enough diversions to help the three sneak past them. There were even times when Espeon used its power to confuse the guards long enough for them to slip past. When they came upon a locked door, Wes would slowly observe it carefully before deciding whether or not behind it was another passage or trap. Of course, Espeon's power to predict slightly into the future helped them to hide from unexpected guests. Best of all, Wes seemed to immediately know where the spy cameras are mounted and immediately figure out a blind spot for them to use.

"Amazing," Lunick thought as he watched Wes worked professionally. The boy's amber eyes never seemed to have failed to detect the slightest weakness in this strong fort. It was like watching a movie on bated breath. Will they make it or will they not? Finally, after several wrong turns and a couple frustrated but silent tantrums, they have finally reached their destination.

"Someone is in there," Wes said, peeking past the wall to see a large steel door with a small barred window on top shut tight. Next to them were four Snagem guards. None of them had the look of sleepiness in their eyes.

"Solana is in there?" Rui asked in a hushed whisper. She put herself as close to Wes as possible.

"Yeah, no doubt," Wes muttered. "I've been on guard duty long enough back in the days to know the difference between guarding valuables and guarding a prisoner." Lunick immediately started to charge forward and would've done so had Wes not immediately grabbed his red jacket.

"Let go of me!" Lunick hissed. It took all of Wes' strength and some of Rui's to keep Lunick hidden and quiet.

"Are you stupid?" Wes said angrily, "You go in right now and you'll ruin your chances of saving your ranger friend!"

"But, but!" Lunick protested. He was so close. Yet so far. One door. Just one door. The look on Lunick's face made Wes sigh in frustration. The plan still need some work.

"Think! Even if we get her out right now, there is no way we can carry an injured person without raising suspicion."

"What? She's injured?" Lunick asked, shocked enough to not try and fight anymore.

"The likely hood is great, assuming she is still alive," Wes said. He let that sink in and Lunick fell to the ground in shock. Wes sighed. If they want to get out, they're going to need a diversion. Still, Lunick's idea of just blindly charging -.

"Wait a minute," Wes thought, "Now there is an idea." Maybe Lunick does come up with good ideas once in a while.

"Rui, Lunick," Wes said softly. Both of them immediately looked up at the sound of their name. It looked like Wes is done planning. "Our main objective is to rescue Lunick's friend. However, there are other things that caught my attention as well and I'm not going to let this chance slip away." Wes paused for a moment to make sure that the two were listening. "Therefore, listen closely to what I have to say and memorize it word by word…"

…

Solana was staring at the ground without much of a reaction. She was weak and was hurting all over. Dry blood covered every part where an open wound had been. Her hands and feet were chained together so that her wrists and ankles were also in pain. Who knew this simple mission could take such a drastic turn of events? Solana hoped that Murph and Rui had managed to escape at the very least. At least then, she knew that she had done her job correctly. The small light coming from the barred window of the door was her only source of light. She could see poor Plusle lying down on the ground as well. The Pokemon was breathing but Solana knew that without medical attention, Plusle might not make it.

"Hey!" The word jolted Solana from her slumbering tiredness. "Who are you? What's going-? ACK!" There was sound of fists coming from outside. What was going on? Then there was a sound of running and more yelling. Solana couldn't make out the words. Then a huge alarm sounded.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

That woke Solana up real fast. She jerked her head upward and saw to her surprise, a face staring back at her.

"Solana," the red hair girl said, her blue eyes filled with concern, "Are you okay?"

"R-Rui?" Solana gasped. She felt the blood in her mouth trickling down her chin. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, to put it in Lunick's words, I'm 'busting' you out," Rui explained.

"Lunick?" Solana gasped, "You know him? He's here?" However, Rui didn't respond. She had lowered her head out of Solana's view but Solana could hear the sound of the keyhole being messed with. Finally, for the first time since she was held here, the door opened. Next to Rui was a black Umbreon. The yellow patterns on its fur coat glowed so that the entire room was filled with light. Rui almost gasped in horror at the sight of Solana but managed to hold it back.

"Come on," Rui said finally, "We need to get you out of here." She carefully took another key from the ring and opened Solana's chains. "Thank goodness, Wes colored coded these keys for me."

"Wes?" Solana said, puzzled by this new yet familiar name, "Is he the guy you-?"

"Yeah," Rui said, smiling for the first time, "He helped rescue me." She looked dreamy for a moment before she realized what she had to do. "Bu-but that's not important right now!" Solana noticed that Rui was looking a bit red in the face.

It was difficult, but Rui managed to lift Solana up and shoulder Solana's arm to allow the ranger to be able to hobble out of the room. On Rui's other shoulder was Solana's Plusle. Wes' Umbreon took the lead, making sure that no one else was around.

"Wait a minute," Solana said, "Where is Lunick? And Murph?"

"They're creating a diversion right now," Rui whispered, wincing a bit from the weight. Thank goodness Wes was never a gentleman back at Orre and made her carry her own bags. At least she was prepared to carry one person and a small Pokemon out. With a bit of difficulty, Rui pulled out a piece of paper that Wes drew. On it was a diagram of the complex that they were in and the route that they should take. Leave it to Wes to be able to memorize the path they took and figure out how the hallways work.

"Will, will they be okay?" Solana asked before closing her eyes in pain. Rui paused a moment before answering that.

"Yeah, yeah, they'll be okay."

…

Wes jumped down from ceiling and found himself face to face with two Snagem grunts. Before they could so much make a peep of a sound, Wes knocked one of them out cold with his fist. Lunick, who hid behind the open door, managed to tackle the other one down, causing the grunt to hit his head against the wall and slump into unconsciousness.

"This way!" Wes said, running down the hall.

"Let me catch my breath first!" Lunick groaned. Minun groaned as well. It was tired of all of this nonstop movement and it felt like it was going to be sick soon. "And where are we running to?"

"We're drawing them away," Wes said, "The farther the better. An exit would be nice as well!"

"There they are!" A voice yelled from up ahead. Wes winced. He didn't think there would be this many guards here so soon. "Grab that traitor and his partner!" Wes didn't hesitate and hurried down another corridor. Lunick was right behind his tail. The voices were getting louder and louder.

"Aw man," Lunick groaned, "Why do things have to be so complicated?" Suddenly, Wes spied a large door in front of him and without hesitation opened the door.

"In here!" Lunick ran in and Wes immediately slammed the door shut. The entire room was dark. Wes couldn't see anything really and stumbled into the darkness.

"Hey, Wes," Lunick said, "Do you have a light or anything?"

As though to answer his plea, a strong bright light appeared all of a sudden onto both Wes and Lunick. The light shined like a bright beacon. Immediately, Wes, always on his guard, placed his back against the baffled Lunick.

"Well, well, well, looks like you arrived just in time Wes."

"What's going on?" Lunick asked, shielding his eyes from the glaring light.

"It was a trap all along!" Wes said angrily. He shouldn't have been so careless! Slowly, coming out of the shadows and into the light from all sides were four people. Of course, the light made it hard for Wes to see clearly who the four were but he didn't have to guess.

"I applaud you," the chilling voice of the man said as he clapped his hand. The sound echoed in the entire cold room. "For coming this far. Especially with an inexperience ranger. Such a feat is not easy. And you even came here earlier than I expected."

"Ein," Wes growled. This man was probably the most dangerous of the four. Clever yet callous – a scientist who can now only be called an evil and mad one.

"You know these people?" Lunick asked, squinting to see but failing miserably.

"What?" A monkey voice screeched, "Are you telling us that you never told your friend about us? How rude!" These people were obviously toying with Wes. They see that there was no way for him to get out and now doing their best to have some fun.

"Weak," the third man grunted as though speaking took too much effort out of him, "No fun."

"Still," another voice said, this time female, "I was hoping for a bit of dramatic appearance. Surely a diva like me would need to have a climatic appearance."

"Venus," Wes said the woman's name as though it was filth. This woman was the worst. Thinking only about herself and her popularity. It was a wonder that people like her back at Orre. Not to mention that she used her popularity to make Wes a wanted criminal with obsessive Venus fans on the streets after him. "Still a selfish drama queen as always."

"Aw," the woman said, feigning hurtfulness, "Your face has the exact same heartless look when you look at me. You should try to smile more or you won't get my attention."

"Save your breath," Wes hissed. The very sounds of these voices were making his blood boil. He needed to calm down and fast before he did something reckless.

"Wes," Lunick said, sounding a little bit shock. Wes never lost his control like this. He was even shaking from fury.

"Enough, enough," Ein said, "I think we're making our guests quite impatient."

"What are you doing here?" Wes demanded. His voice was still calm but there was a slight tone of force in it. "Orre not good enough for you?"

"Really now," Ein said and Wes knew that the man was smiling, "Surely you don't actually believe that we'll tell you the reason."

"Hmph," Wes said, giving off a challenging and yet angry grin, "Still, you wouldn't want to anger your guests, right?"

"Of course not," Ein said, a smile still on his face. Immediately, Wes and Lunick found themselves surrounded by four Pokemon – Manectric, Ludicolo, Houndoom, and Milotic. "We'll make sure you'll never be angry again."

**Author's Notes**

Now we will know the true terror of Cipher… in the next chapter. Lol.

Meet the Hexagon Brothers! I hope I portray their stupidity correctly. And we finally got a bit of action. Will Wes and Lunick make it out okay? Sure hope so because the situation looks pretty grim right now. Lol.

So, for those who don't know already, I have posted up a new story – **Black and White Memories**. If you're interested go ahead and check it out. It is based on the new Black and White version of the Pokemon game. Also, your votes will determine the situation on my current stories (whether I will update them or not).

Anyways, let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**Sparky**

**littlmidget123**

…

That's it from me! See you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	10. You Better Run And Fast

**Disclaimer: I can't own Pokemon. Can you?**

Well, sorry for the delay but the next chapter is up! :D

I got school now, so as you can see, updates are ten times slower. And of course, the chapter is bit shorter than usual.

To cap off from last chapter, Solana and Rui are trying to escape while Wes and Lunick have gotten themselves in a pretty sticky situation. What is going to happen now?

Also, I have changed the Pokemon Lanturn to Manetric. I've realized after I updated this that there is no way a water Pokemon like that can move on land… yeah… The other chapter will be fixed with the name as well.

Anyways, enjoy!

**Chapter 9:**

Murph flinched when the alarm started to screech. The noise reminded him of the time back at ranger school when the teacher would use her nails and drag them down the chalkboard when the class misbehaved. Goosebumps formed on his skin. As for the six Hexagon Brothers stared at each other puzzling at the sound of the noise and started to panic.

"What is that?" The red ranger brother yelled over the noise.

"Trespassers!" The yellow ranger cried out. "Inside of the building!"

"How is that possible?" The green ranger said, "We were guarding the entrance the whole time!"

_Uh oh,_ Murph thought. He remembered what Wes had said.

_"Listen Murph, if things get bad and the Hexagon Brothers figure out that something is wrong, you need to get out of there fast. We'll be able to escape and give you cover so don't worry about us."_ Murph slowly inched his way toward the forest while the brothers continued to talk. Carefully, carefully…

"Hey where are you going?" the yellow ranger yelled, noticing Murph. The ranger flinched in fear as the others turned to look at him as well.

"Hold it," the red ranger, the slightly smarter one of the group, said as though he just realized something about Murph, "Where is your uniform? And now that I think about it, who were those people we let in?"

"Umm, well, errr," Murph sputtered, not knowing what to do now. He tried to run for it but the brown ranger grabbed his arm. "Okay, okay, I can explain!"

Suddenly, a large shadow grabbed Murph's other arm and pulled him away.

"What the-? Who are you?" The green ranger demanded. However, instead of responding to the questions, the person simply glared at the Hexagon brothers.

"Leave him alone," the shadow said. Murph blinked several times and immediately realized who the back of the person. The long green hair, the red ranger outfit… Spenser was here! Immediately, Murph sighed a huge breath of relief. They were saved! "And open the door while you're at it," Spenser added. His eyes were filled with anger and Murph had learned that when Spenser was that mad, it was best to not argue and if possible, run away.

"You can't make ridiculous demands like that!" The green Hexagon brother sputtered.

"Sorry, Murph," Spenser said to Murph, ignoring the Hexagon brother's questioning but nevertheless kept his eyes in front of the enemy, "I was trying to pound some information on those guys but they turned out to be very tough. What is going on inside? Where are the others?"

"Well… umm," Murph sputtered again but Spenser immediately got the message. The ranger groaned in frustration. The situation has become even more complicated. Why is it that the people he had to take care of are the most stubborn ones?

"When this is over, you and Lunick are on cleaning duty for the next year." Murph gulped. Lunick was not going to be happy about that.

"Wait a minute!" The red Hexagon brother exclaimed, pointing toward Murph, "You guys are wearing the same -." The guy didn't finish for Spenser wrapped his hand around the man's throat. The man was so surprise that all he could say was, "Gakkk!"

"Brother!" the other five cried out but had to move back suddenly a large Ferrow appeared out of nowhere and started to snap its beak at the five brothers.

"Ahhhh! Get away! Get away!" The five brothers screamed as they started to run around. It never occurred to them to retaliate by sending out their own Pokemon. Spenser slowly tightened his hold around the man's neck; just enough to let him know what would happen if he objected.

"Open the door," Spenser said; his tone was now dead serious, "Now."

…

The first thing Wes did was slammed Lunick to the ground and then, like a deadly assassin, threw two Poke balls to the ground with such speed and accuracy like ninja stars. Immediately, Dodrio and Espeon popped out of their Poke balls and charged at the enemy's Pokemon.

"What are you-?" Lunick demanded, overcoming the shock of what Wes had done to him.

"Espeon, Reflect!" Wes ordered, "Dodrio, Shadow Blitz!" Espeon surrounded Wes and Lunick with a strong clear barrier and the same for Dodrio and itself. Dodrio squawked before charging forward toward Ludicolo. Bam! The water and grass type Pokemon rolled around like a bowling ball before slamming against Milotic. Bam! Dodrio didn't stop and continued toward Houndoom. The flying bird Pokemon was losing control and started to attack everywhere. Espeon on the other hand managed to dodge gracefully and received no damage thanks to its Reflect barrier.

"Oh my, is that the Shadow Dodrio you 'stole from us?" the cold voice said.

"He didn't steal it!" Lunick retorted back, "You stole it in the first place!" The man ignored Lunick and continued to address to Lunick.

"Since you send it out, it is obvious that you're in a desperate situation. Keep it up and you're going to end up digging your own grave."

"Shut up!" Wes roared. Lunick and Minun flinched in fear. They had never thought Wes would lose this much control. "Dodrio, use Shadow Blitz again!" The bird didn't listen to Wes but nevertheless, continued to charge around.

"No!" Venus squealed as the sight of Milotic flinching from being hit, "Move your stupid Ludicolo Miror B.!" Lunick looked up and was finally able to see the lady who said this. The woman, Venus, was a long hair brunette with corkscrew bangs. She had a very thin pink silk covering her mouth. She was wearing some sort of white dress decorated with blue diamond crystals at the bottom and with long pink sleeves. On her back, she was carrying what appeared to be a very large crescent moon. She had the body of a thin model and a very pretty face but right now, it had this disgust look that made her look more ugly than beautiful and her light amber eyes were narrowed in arrogance.

"Whaa?" Lunick looked up at the sound of the monkey voice and saw the largest afro in his life. He looked down and saw that It belonged to a man with some red garish shades and a golden disco outfit complete with white boots. Lunick didn't know whether to laugh or to gag at the sight. "You should watch yourself! My darling Ludicolo can't stand with this stressful situation!"

"Stressful situation?" Venus cried, "You are obsessed with your stupid Ludicolo 24/7! I swear, you pamper your Pokemon better than people!"

"Well, what about you?" Miror B. cried; his white teeth were blinding Lunick. "You and your stupid facial care products are totally ruining the space! And you keep wasting your time by hosting your stupid television shows!" Miror B. put one hand on his hip, pretended he had a microphone in the other hand, and said in a squeaky and unconvincing girly voice, "I'm your Venusssss!"

"Shut up you retro geek! You're just jealous that I'm actually popular! And your afro is so obsolete!" Venus yelled in fury. The two continued to bicker as though they completely forgot their surroundings.

"Espeon, Psybeam!" Wes cried out, not skipping a single beat. Espeon fired this attack toward Houndoom but the fire Pokemon merely dodged and gave an angry growl.

"Manetric, use Thunder!" The cold voice ordered. The blast hit Dodrio who screeched in pain and fell to the ground. Lunick immediately felt the top of his hair singed from the electricity and was grateful now that Wes had pushed him to the ground.

"Houndoom, Fire Fang!" This came from an ape looking man whose red brownish hair stuck out like a fiery flame. His face had weird paint on it to make him look even wilder. On the man's neck was a necklace made of Poke balls. He had on a white outfit that outlined his muscles and abs. His large hands could wrap around Lunick's head and hold it like a basketball. The Houndoom charged straight at Lunick but the ranger managed to dodge out of the way and kicked the fire dog while at it. Lunick could feel the heat coming off from the hot fire. Thank goodness he managed to dodge that.

"Minun!" Lunick yelled and the little Pokemon used Quick Attack straight at the Pokemon to add to the pain it was receiving.

"You dare to hurt my Pokemon?" The giant roared and Lunick gulped in horror as the man stomped one of his foot to the ground and crouched like a sumo wrestler.

"Move out of the way!" Wes yelled, ordering his Espeon to shoot a Confusion attack at Manectric. The attack managed to slam against the electric dog but it didn't cause too much damage as Wes hoped.

"Give me a bit of a warning!" Lunick said, barely dodging that attack. Wes responded by kicking Lunick out of the way to avoid Manectric's Thunder Wave attack. "Ouch! Like that! Whose side are you on anyways?"

"You're not getting away with this!" Venus yelled with anger. "Milotic, dazzle us with Hydro Pump!" The long snake like Pokemon, with the same angry and haughty look on its face, sent out a powerful tornado of water toward Wes and Lunick.

"Ludicolo, dance with us with Ice Beam!" Miror B.'s Pokemon blasted an icy attack. Lunick immediately flinched and shield his face until he realized after a couple of seconds that the attack hasn't hit them at all. Espeon had jumped up front to take the attacks. However, the sacrifice left the Pokemon barely holding on right now. "TCHA! Looks like we'll have to use more force!" Miror B. said. "Ice Beam again!"

"Espeon!" Wes yelled and returned his Pokemon into its Poke ball and out of harm's way as Ludicolo's Ice Beam attack came again. Although Wes managed to save Espeon, the Ice Beam attack slammed at the boy's feet and froze it up to his knees. The attack hit Lunick as well and not only his legs but his arms were frozen to the floor as well. Minun was the only one who managed to avoid the attack since it was on top of Lunick's head.

"Damn!" Wes gasped as the feeling of a thousand needles pierced his legs. Lunick struggled to move but the pain was too great. Minun started to pull on the ice as though its weak arms tried to grab the slippery ice.

"Ohh!" Miror B. exclaimed, happy as the two struggled to break free. "Looks like my attack was the finishing move! I win!"

"No fair!" Venus wailed, unhappy at the result. Dakim pouted and mumbled to himself.

"Fool," the cold voice said, finally stepping out of the shadows to reveal himself – the last of the four people. Immediately, all the other people hushed up. Wes' eyes flashed dangerously like the time before when the man had first spoken to them.

Lunick took one look to see who this person was and realized that this guy was on a whole other level. The man, surprising young, wore dark purple shades and had slick long black hair with long strand of hair that was shaped like a lightning bolt on his forehead. He wore what appeared to be a flashy style of white lab coat and purple pants. "You lost the moment you decided to battle against us. Seriously Wes, you're getting sloppy. I would've thought you would put up a better fight," Ein said, smirking at the murderous look on Wes' face.

"Your friends should have already been captured," Ein continuing as though he wanted to see how much he can throw at Wes' face before the guy lost his cool again and slowly walked toward Wes before stopping just a couple of feet away. "I think a nice long torture should be a great welcoming present for Rui. Maybe I should cut up that pretty face of hers."

Wes' eyes widened with fury and swung his fist at Ein but the man was still too far away to hit.

"Careful!" Ein said, grinning, "Or else the ranger you were trying to save will end up the same way as Rui will." This time, Wes wasn't the only person whose anger was burning up. Lunick couldn't take it anymore.

"Minun!" Lunick yelled, "Shock that guy!" Electricity blasted out of Minun's cheek and for a single moment, Lunick thought that they had managed to hit Ein but at the man merely stood there and at the last second, the electricity froze and changed direction, hitting Ein's Manetric. "Wh-what?" Lunick sputtered in shock as the electric dog Pokemon merely shook its head in discomfort from the attack.

"Futile," Ein said, slowly turning to Lunick's direction for the first time. "My Manetric has the ability called Lightning Rod. It takes any electrical attacks that are aimed at others. Though I guess common sense such as this doesn't exist for a ranger."

"Don't you dare criticize a ranger!" Lunick yelled. Ein snapped his fingers and immediately, Minun was grabbed by Dakim. "Minun!" Lunick watched as the small mouse Pokemon struggled in Dakim's large hands. "Let Minun go!"

"Are you in a position to make such demands?" Venus said, giggling like a high school girl. "You do realize that we're still deciding how to kill you."

"Oh I think we are," Wes said, speaking up for the first time since they were frozen. There was a sudden silence as everyone, including Lunick, turned to stare at Wes. The guy was… smirking? "I suggest you start listening to me if you want to get out of here alive."

"_What was Wes talking about_?" Lunick thought desperately. "_That Venus woman was right, what kind of position are they in to make such demands_?"

"What are you talking about?" Ein said as though reading Lunick's mind as well, for the first time, the scientist sounded worried, maybe even scared. Venus' smile disappeared like a light bulb that had just blown out.

"Do you really think I would just waltz in your secret base without a backup plan? Especially after that fiasco back in Orre?" Wes said calmly and looking down so no one could really see his eyes. Lunick stared blankly at Wes' rhetoric questions, but it seemed that the Cipher Admins had look of small fear on their faces. "I've brought more Pokemon with me. And let's just say that they're not very happy being coped up inside their Poke balls all the time." Ein's eyes widened with shock as though he knew what Wes was talking about. Lunick, on the other hand, was completely clueless but this backup plan didn't sound like it was a good backup plan.

"No," Ein gasped as though he couldn't believe it, "You didn't…" For the first time, the scientist was showing fear – pure fear. Before the admins could react, Wes opened his trench coat to reveal two Poke balls and opened them.

Lunick felt a strong rumbling and suddenly found the room being held by two large Pokemon that seemed to tower like massive giants despite being in such a large room. One was a blue steel tank-like Pokemon with a large steel 'X' on its large blue discus face. Despite its massive body size, it was still able to float. The other Pokemon was a large green dinosaur with spikes going down its back and a very nasty looking set of sharp teeth. It let out a horrifying roar so great that Dakim dropped Lunick's Minun who squealed in fear.

"You know I still can't control these Shadow Pokemon very well," Wes said calmly to the horrified group. "So I suggest you start running. And fast."

…

Rui gritted her teeth, realizing that they have all fallen into a trap. They wanted to make sure that Wes would try to stir up trouble elsewhere and away from her in order to help her escape with the hostage, but in reality, these people had already foreseen that and used it to their advantage so that she would be easier to be recaptured. The situation was bad. Umbreon was in pretty bad shape as it tried to fight off another set of Pokemon, namely a bunch of Whismur.

Rui couldn't run far or fast while carrying an injured person and she didn't have any Pokemon on herself either. And Solana's Plusle couldn't fight either in its weaken state. On the other hand, the guards' Pokemon kept on coming.

"HA!" one of the bald Snagem guards said. "Looks like you'll have to surrender now. Or aren't you worried about what will happen to your precious friends?" Rui flinched in fear. What was she going to do now?

"Well, things are going to plan pretty well," another guard snickered, "We get the girl back and teach that traitorous Wes a lesson. This is why the bad guys always get their way." Rui opened her mouth to speak but before she could utter an angry word…

"No you won't!" Solana said, speaking up for the first time. Despite the condition she was in, the ranger spoke with defiance. "Kidnapping people and hurting Pokemon, you won't get away with it!"

"Uh, I think we just did," the Snagem guard said, grinning at Solana's weakened state.

"I think you won't," a voice said from behind. "Ferrow, get rid of them!" All of a sudden a large Ferrow appeared and started attacking the guards.

"WAHHHH!" the Snagem grunts screamed as the giant bird tried to peck them to death. They ran off far away with their Pokemon skirmishing behind them.

"Man, I'm starting to appreciate Ferrow a lot," the voice said, coming toward Rui and Solana.

"Spenser?" Solana gasped in shock and relief. "You're here? Where's Murph?"

"Of course I'm here. Murph is outside, standing guard," Spenser said. His face turned to shock as he got a better look at Solana. "Solana, are you okay?" He immediately helped Solana off of Rui's shoulder and put the ranger on his back. "If I see those guys again, they're going to pay. You need to get help now."

"Hmmm, I fine," Solana said, looking exhausted yet relieved that they were going to be okay now. Rui ran toward Umbreon and picked the tired Pokemon up.

"You're Rui right? Are you okay?" Spenser said to the red hair girl who was looking blankly at the situation folding in front of her. Rui nodded, shocked that the guy knew her name. The last time they met, he saved Murph and her life before running off after some Snagem guys. The Ring Town ranger leader looked around as though expecting to see someone else. "Where is Lunick? And that Wes guy?"

Before anybody could answer the two questions, the floor began to violently shake. Rui almost stumbled to the ground if Spenser had not grabbed her by the arm. "Steady now," he said, there was a hint of panic inside his voice.

"What's going on?" Solana said, realizing that not just the floor but the walls were shaking as well. Cracks were forming on the walls.

"The building is going to collapse," Spenser said, "Come on!" He and Rui sprinted down the passage. They could hear other people screaming and running for their lives but ignored the three intruders. Debris started to fall from the ceiling.

"Wait, what about Lunick and Wes?" Rui said, "They're probably still in the building!"

"Once I get you guys out, I'll go look for them!" Spenser said from the roaring sound of the building. "Right now, your safety should be the number one concern!" Rui looked frantically around her as though Wes might pop up beside them any second.

_Wes, where are you…?_

**Author's Notes**

Well that's it from me. Urgh, I'm exhausted.

How many of you guys were shocked to see Wes' other Pokemon? Can you tell what they are? I hope the battle scenes were good. I got kind of lazy in the middle. XP

Let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**Oleab 1**

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**littlmidget123**

**Jello** (Ah I see. I first wrote red but then I realized later that they were more amber color so I've been using that color now. Don't worry, you're not flaming me and I'm not offended at all. Thanks for reviewing)

…

That's it from me.

**-JapanDreamer**


	11. The Fairy Healer

**Disclaimer: I won't be able to own Pokemon**

Another update! :D

This chapter is a bit magical and I hope will be entertaining. Of course, I have a couple of important announcements to make in **Author Notes**. SO PLEASE READ IT!

**Chapter 10:**

The first thing happened was that the ice chains that held Lunick and Wes to the ground broke. Ice scattered across the ground like tiny crystals that melted into small puddles of water. The second thing that happened was that the Cipher Admins had run away, all cursing and screaming. Where they had gone, Lunick didn't know but right now, there were more pressing issues to deal with than pursuing those people. "Wes, are you okay?" Lunick yelled over the sound of rumbling and destruction. He winced as he got up for the numbing pain in his hands shot up into his arms. Minun quickly got onto Lunick's head and shivered in fear. "Wes? Answer me!"

Wes didn't respond except with a sharp gasp of pain. He, unlike Lunick, fell to the ground and as he struggled to get up, it was as though watching a cripple trying to get up. Lunick tried not to wince at the sight of Wes' stiff frozen legs. Lunick was lucky for the ice that froze him to the ground was light enough to be broken easily. Although his hands felt as though frostbite has kicked in, Lunick's injuries was nothing compared to Wes. While Wes's arms weren't damaged during the attack, the damage to his leg was great enough so that he couldn't even move them much less stand up. Lunick hurried over and on his shoulder, placed one of Wes' arms and lifted him up.

"Don't worry about me," Wes snapped, still the same attitude as always, "I just need time to get the feeling back into my legs. Go now and find the others." Lunick ignored Wes' comment and continued to pull him away from the crumbling building. He still couldn't believe how thin and skinny Wes was. It was as though Wes' bones were hollowed out and made light.

Tyranitar shot off another Hyper Beam into the air and another load of debris fell to the ground. And Metagross slammed its body against the ground over and over again, causing the floor to shake so much that Lunick was having difficulty keeping his balance. They were never going to get out of this mess as long as those rampaging monsters keep attacking. Lunick spotted and managed to grab the two Poke balls on the shaken ground with his feet, kicked it up like a soccer ball to catch them in his hand, and thrust them into Wes'.

"Return your Pokemon!" Lunick yelled. "Before we all get killed!"

"You don't have to yell," Wes said, put weakly lifted the Poke balls up and said. "Return." Immediately, Tyranitar and Metagross were sucked in. However, the destruction still continued. The roof was going to collapse. And the door that they had used was blocked by boulders. "Damn, that was a greater risk than I expected. We managed to get rid of them, but the building isn't going to last any longer. Lunick, go save the others." Wes tried to get out of Lunick's grasp but the ranger just held on tighter.

"Not until I get you out of here safely," Lunick snapped.

"I have a better chance of surviving than they do," Wes shot back. "You should try to save them and yourself before it is too late. Lunick stared as though he wanted to slap the guy but instead yelled back.

"Stop comparing your life as though it is less important than the others! I'm getting you out of here and that's final! If I can't save your life, how can I save theirs?" There was a long silence before Wes responded.

"You really can't shut up," Wes muttered but Lunick didn't hear him. Lunick noticed that there was a hole in one of the walls made by one of Tyranitar's Hyper Beam. He could see sunlight streaming out. There was an easy way out now! "Come on!"

"I can't walk you know," Wes muttered as Lunick dragged him to the wall. It was a miracle that rocks were not falling on top of them. Minun squealed and flinched every so often. Finally, they got past through all of the rubble and reached the sunlit grassy area. The flat land, however, was cut off by a steep cliff that plunged into what appeared to be a dark valley with dark green trees.

"Okay," Lunick said, setting Wes gently down to the ground just far enough from the factory but away from the deep cliff. "Now, you stay here and I'll-" Lunick never got to explain his plan for there was a sound of explosion. BOOM! The entire building fell to the ground and heavy rocks flew everywhere. The smell of smoke filled Lunick's nostril and the sound echoed in Lunick's ears.

The next thing Lunick or Wes knew, they were blown in to the air by the powerful wave of energy. Lunick found his body tumbling and bouncing across the ground and, before he could stop, went right over the cliff. "AHHHHHHH!" Lunick thought he was done for until something grabbed him by the arm. Lunick looked up to see that Wes had managed to keep a holding at the edge of the cliff and was holding on it for both of their lives. Now it was his turn to save the both of them.

"Hang in there!" Wes said, wincing in pain. Wes really knew how to take the term into its literal definition. Lunick noticed that although Wes was clutching tightly onto the edge of the cliff. The dirt and rock were loose to begin with and Lunick watched in horror as the dirt started to crumble and fall into the chasm below. Finally, as though watching it in slow motion, Wes' hand slipped and gave away. Lunick watched Wes' distressed look as they both fell down into the deep chasm. The ranger closed his eyes, waiting for the impact to hit and kill the both of them.

But it never came.

…

"Damn, this factory is done for!" Venus said as she watched the smoke rise up past the trees and disappearing into the clouds. "After all that work trying to build it secretly." She and the rest of the Cipher Admins were flying in a helicopter that they had in a hidden base that was a couple of miles away from the factory. All four of them had to move quickly because backup is bound to come really soon and if any of them spotted their helicopter… well, it would put them in a sticky situation.

"We made plenty of those devices," Miror B. said who was sitting next to Venus, much to her displeasure, "So it wasn't a complete waste. Though things still ended with a complete BANG!" The disco man laughed and slapped his leg at his own little joke.

"Shut up you stupid disco freak!" Venus screeched, slapping Miror B. in the face.

"Owie, ow, ow!" The disco man's cheek had a red imprint of a hand. "Watch the afro! That baby took two months to perfect into what it is now. Though I could say the same thing with your plastic surgery."

"You are the most useless person in this entire group! You should be more respectful to a beauty queen like me!" Venus squealed as Miror B. laughed again. "I did NOT have plastic surgery. This is my entire beautiful and natural self!"

"Shut up!" And the two immediately quelled under Dakim's eyes which was growing with anger. After a minute of tense air, Dakim rolled his eyes in annoyance and looked away. His blank and dull stare suggested that he didn't know nor couldn't figure out what he was suppose to think.

"I didn't calculate that he would bring those two Pokemon. They have the strongest and deadliest powers of all the Shadow Pokemon," Ein said as he looked at the laptop. He was sitting next to Dakim and next to the window. The screen reflected on his purple shades. "I wished we had captured them so we could analyze them again… They would've made the plan go smoother. Shame we lost the girl. She could've have been our eyes and not to mention we could've gotten rid of Wes once and for all.

"Still things don't always go to plan…" Ein finished and closed his laptop and rubbed his eyes after removing his glasses. "Well, if things stay on course, those rangers will come out alive and take the bait."

"Oh boy," Miror B. said, turning to Ein, "You actually think Gordor will be able to take care of it in Jungle Relic?"

"Of course," Ein said, grinning, "His Go-Rock Quads may be flashy but their skills are top notch. All we have to do is lay the bait and those stupid rangers will unwittingly complete the plan for us."

"Oh this is getting so exciting," Venus said, giggling like a childish girl. "Those three legendary Pokemon will soon be ours now."

Ein smirked and looked out of the window.

_You guys better stay alive. For the sake of our plan._

…

"Can't believe the entire building exploded," Spenser said as he marched up higher and higher, his shoes crunched from the rocks below. He barely made it out with Rui and Solana when the explosion came and the entire building exploded. There was nothing left in its place except smoke and a lot of rocks. Several spots still had fire burning but it was contained into one spot. Spenser was starting to freak out right now. He had called for backup but that won't come for a while. There was the smell of lingering death but Spenser refused to believe the worst case scenario. In the meantime, Spenser and Rui decided to search for any survivors, mainly Wes and Lunick. Spenser ordered Murph to take Solana back to the ranger station to heal up and give a report.

"Wes!" Rui called out even though she knew there was going to be no response. "Wes, where are you?" She looked on the verge of tears. Umbreon's yellow color ring pattern on its fur glowed brightly, allowing Rui to look at hard to see and dark spots. The Pokemon, too, had a look of worry on its face and was working quite diligently. Spenser's Fearow flew overhead for a better bird's eye view of the area. They've been at this for almost an hour and still no sign. There was no way they'll be able to find the two.

"Lunick!" Spenser yelled, hoping that idiotic ranger would pop out of nowhere with that idiotic heroic look on his face as always. Out of frustration, Spenser kicked a pile of rubble and it rolled down the small makeshift hill, bouncing along.

"Mr. Ranger sir!" Rui called out. "I found something!" Spenser immediately turned and saw Rui far away and pointing to the bottom of the hill. Spenser noticed his Fearow flying over in a circle, indicating that Rui's finding was very important. With expertise, Spenser ran through the pile and though it was difficult, managed to get over. He gasped in shock. There at the bottom, there was a pair of blue colored ears. They were twitching slightly. Spenser's body seemed to freeze for a moment. He knew whose ears those belonged to.

"Rui! Stay back!" Spenser warned and jumped down the pile carefully yet quickly. Rocks tumbled under his feet, but Spenser was trained well enough to keep his balance. Umbreon, too, jumped down as well and followed Spenser to their target.

As they got closer, Spenser was able to confirm whose ears they belonged to - a small frail mouse looking Pokemon with blue cheeks. "Minun!" The Pokemon was dangerously close to a cliff and Spenser immediately crouched to pick up the tired and weak Pokemon who opened its eyes and gave a squeak of relief. "The others should be around here!" Spenser looked around for any sign of life but like before, nothing but piles of rubble. Umbreon was already on the job, shifting through rocks and sniffing the ground. Spenser took a deep breath and tried to stay calm.

Minun was alive, so the others must be too. _They have to be_.

…

Deep within the forest, a group of Snagem members were sitting around, trying to catch their breath after that narrow and hazardous life-or-death situation. None of them were happy and most looked as though they wanted to give up.

"Man," one of the Snagem members said, "What are we going to do now?" He threw a rock which hit the trunk of a tree with a loud thunk, and it bounced off and rolled across the grassy ground.

"We wait here," one of the other grunts snapped as he rubbed his bald head with sunscreen. "Better to stick together in case trouble comes. Besides, the boss ordered us to." This grunt took a water bottle from his belt and started chugging down water, allowing some of it to spill onto his shirt.

"Can't believe, the building got destroyed," the complaining grunt muttered. "That guy really knows how to bring a bang to the party… No pun intended."

"Pah, Wes has style and he was the best of all of us back in the days when we were just Team Snagem," another grunt said, "And not to mention that he was the youngest one of all of us. His skills allowed us to become a more efficient team and made all of us stronger members. That's why our team was recruited by Cipher. Though I bet Gonzap is not really happy right now with the way things are. He misses being in charge of everything."

"Speaking of Gonzap, where is he?" the grunt, who had drunk water, asked as he wiped away the drops of water from his shirt. "That man just told us to wait here and left on his own."

"What do you think?" Another grunt said, laughing, though it sounded more forced. "He said he went to see if any of our survivors are still out there. Make sure none of those stupid rangers caught them."

"Our members? Doesn't he mean one in particular? One _EX_-member?" the complaining grunt said. No one needed to answer that. "Hmph, Gonzap doesn't care about any of us if we just simply get in the way of our operations. Many of us have been captured before but it didn't really matter to him. Why should this be any different?"

"Bah, what do you expect? No matter what he says to all of us, we all know Gonzap cares about that boy. After all, he considers Wes as though he is his own son."

…

The first thing Lunick noticed was that something was tickling his cheek. Lunick, with his eyes still closed, merely groaned and turned to his side. Strange, now that Lunick's ears were working properly, there was even the sound of bell-like laughter. Was he dreaming or hallucinating? Now, the tickling turned into poking.

"Wes, stop it," Lunick muttered and tried to swat away the hand that was poking.

"Bii!" The voice protested in anger as though insulted for being called this name. Wait… since when does Wes spoke with a high pitch squealing voice? Trying not to laugh at the thought, Lunick opened his eye and had to close them again for his eyes were blinded by green light. He groaned. Again, bells of laughter… Lunick squinted this time to see that the light had zoomed off like a green bullet. Lunick weakly got up and noticed his surroundings for the first time. They were in the dark green forest again. Only here, it was quiet except the whispering sound from the trees' leaves and, Lunick just now noticed, not a single Pokemon in sight. It was as though the place here was a secret and sacred ground. Wait a minute, what about Wes?

Lunick looked wildly around and to his relief, saw the unconscious boy a couple of feet away, looking completely unharmed. Lunick suddenly noticed that the green light was now circling around Wes' legs. "Hey, what are you doing?" Lunick said, trying to swat away the small ball of light as though it was some annoying pest. The light dodged the rangers' hand and continued to shower Wes with a pale green light. The light became brighter and brighter and through Lunick's eyes watched as Wes' frozen legs healed back to normal. The thief's pale face slowly regained back a little bit of color and his breathing was a lot calmer. The green light surrounding Wes faded slowly and the green ball of the light moved side to side as though dancing with pleasure.

"Wow," Lunick gasped at the green light. "How did you do that?"

"Biii!" The light replied happily. Suddenly, the light expanded and glowed even brighter that Lunick had to shield his eyes again. Once he was able to open them again, he found himself facing a green looking creature. Its head was shaped like a green onion bulb and little white fairy wings on its back. Its small delicate hands covered its mouth as it giggled and its little green legs dangled around as it flew.

"No, no way," Lunick whispered, "Y-you're… you're…"

"Lunick?" Wes said, opening one of his eyes and groaned as well as he got up into sitting position. The thief rubbed his head as though in pain. "How are we still alive?" He suddenly looked down at his legs as though he realized something and widened with shock at them. "What the-?" Then he saw the green fairy floating in the air. Its wings seemed to be leaving behind a trail of glittering pixie dust.

"That's… that's," Lunick choked, unable to speak.

"That's Celebi," Wes whispered.

**Author's Notes**

Oooooo. I wonder what'll happen now. XP

Okay, like I said, I have very important news so please read!

First off, this story might be on hiatus. Why? I have way too many stories so I might have to put one or two stories on hiatus just to keep up in updating and hopefully completing my stories. So I'm giving you guys a chance to voice your opinion as to which ones you want to save. I have put up a poll and its one my profile. Please check it out and vote if you want to save this story. Do not worry too much as of yet but be prepare.

Second, I have a forum up. Come join. I will put up news about my updates, sneak peeks for upcoming stories, story discussions, and other stuff there. However, this all depends on how many people join. Those who have read my BW story and wish to put in an OC, the guidelines are also there. Please follow the instructions.

Now let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**littlmidget123**

**hydro-serpent58**

…

Well, that's it from me.

Thanks for reading.

See you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**

Oh yes, my condolences to those with family in Japan. May this crisis be solved soon and I pray for a speedy recovery.


	12. An Unpleasant Surprises and Reunion

**Disclaimer**: This author can't own Pokemon otherwise she would have already taken over the world. Lol. Jk.

Hey guys, I'm afraid I have some bad news.

If you haven't realize yet, but this story will now be on hiatus for a while until I can catch up with my other stories. Yes, I am sorry but like I said, I went by the votes. **THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE STORY IS CANCEL**. **Shadows within Fiore** will be finished. I will not cancel a story unless something drastic comes up and I WILL MENTION IT.

Now, how long the hiatus will be will most likely be half a year if not more. It will depend entirely how I feel about this situation and whether or not I can come up with a brilliant inspiration that'll speed up this story.

Anyways, enjoy the last chapter before the hiatus.

**Chapter 11:**

"They're not here," Spenser said in frustration. "I can't find them." He and Umbreon had dug into the pile where Minun was found but there was nothing except rocks and more rocks. The sun shining down upon them was unbearable. Spenser could feel his skin stinging from the powerful rays of sunlight. Rui was holding onto Minun carefully like a baby. _Nothing… and nothing!_ Spenser could feel the frustration overwhelming him. He rarely got this mad but this time he couldn't help it. He was the Ring Town's Ranger and one of the top rangers in the region yet he couldn't even protect his own team. What kind of leader was he if he couldn't even do that?

"Mr. Ranger, sir…" Spenser turned to Rui who looked quite uneasy to have interrupted Spenser's search but still wanted to say something. "Is it possible that they fell down there?" She pointed a couple feet away and Spenser followed with his eyes to where Rui was pointing. There was a cliff… it looked like the edge had crumbled a bit from the explosion. Spenser quickly walked over and peered down the chasm which was pitched black. Very unstable Spenser thought as he noticed dirt and rocks crumbled and plunged down quite easily. Yet… Minun was found very close to it…

"Rui and Umbreon, you two stay here."

"What? But-"

"The cliff is unstable." As if to prove Spenser's point, there was an ominous crack as the roots from a tree growing on the cliff lost its foot and tumbled into the chasm. The sound was dull as though a mere echo. Spenser didn't continue speaking until the noise stopped. "It'll be much faster if I searched alone. Besides we can't be sure if they're down there. I'll be back with the two if I find them." Spenser avoided wording the possibility of bodies… Rui looked unhappy but nodded while Umbreon looked furious and followed Spenser.

"Umbreon, wait here!" Rui exclaimed, but the Pokemon stubbornly refused to listen until the ranger crouched down to whisper in its ears.

"Please keep Rui safe." Spenser muttered. "I'm pretty sure your trainer would want to make sure she's okay." Umbreon's ears dropped as though battling conflicting thoughts. Finally, Umbreon gave a nod and walked back to Rui who looked a little bit confused as to why Umbreon suddenly decided to change its mind.

Spenser waved his hands into the air and his Fearow came and swooped past the ranger and down to the chasm. He gave one last look at Rui. "When backup comes, let them know where I am." After Rui nodded, Spenser quickly took out the rope with a grappling hook and threw it to a tall tree nearby where it was tightly wedged between the branches. He tied the bottom of the rope around his waist. Slowly and carefully, Spenser jumped off the edge and slowly loosened the rope so that he plunged down every couple feet or so. His feet were having a hard time to find a good footing due to the loose rocks and dirt. However, this didn't scare Spenser at all. And just in case, his Fearow would be there to help him. Right now there were more important things to think about.

…

Celebi giggled as it fluttered around the two boys. The one with black hair had his mouth hanging wide open like an idiot while the other white hair boy… well, he simply looked silently shock. Not every day Celebi got to show off to strangers. But then again it wasn't every day that it decided to save the day.

"What's Celebi doing here?" Wes turned to Lunick who seemed to be still muted in shock.

"Legend has it that Celebi resides here," Lunick sputtered. "There is even a shrine." Wes immediately looked around and saw that for once Lunick was accurate on his geography. There indeed was a small brown wooden worn out shrine in the patch of grass that wasn't covered with tree roots. Sunlight was streaming through and past the tree branches, shining specifically on the shrine as though to amplify the importance and the holiness of it.

Wes looked around his surrounding carefully for the first time. They definitely were moved here after falling unconscious from the fall. Wes could not see the cliff in sight. Only trees and a bit of white mist that made it hard to see farther back.

"Bii!" Celebit squealed and, to Wes' surprise, tried to grab the thief's hand and pull him up. Of course, with its weight, the little Pokemon couldn't do much except lift Wes' arm up. "Bii!" Celebi said again only this time it sounded a bit impatient. Not want to hear its high pitch voice nonstop, Wes got up and immediately Celebi let go of his hand and spun around him in an upward spiral. Then it stopped in front of Wes' face so that he was staring straight into its giant eyes.

"What are you staring at?" Wes said, looking a bit annoyed.

"Wes!" Lunick said, angrily, "Celebi is a rare Pokemon. The fact that it is standing in front of you is considered a blessing."

"Just because you're a legend doesn't give you a right to be rude," Wes said calmly.

"Nor if you were a thief," Lunick fired back. Celebi frowned as though frustrated that Wes couldn't tell what it was thinking then zoomed down to his waist and flew upward like a summersault. "What are you doing?" Wes said sharply and made a grab at Celebi. Lunick had no idea what Wes was talking about until he saw a Poke ball in Celebi's hand. How it took it from Wes' pocket and how Wes immediately figured it out, Lunick had no idea. The legendary Pokemon, flitting out of Wes' reach, opened the Poke ball and revealed Joel's Shadow Dodrio that Wes caught. The Shadow Pokemon squawked with anger and still looked batter from the previous fight. Celebi immediately glowed and started to sing in its little voice. Suddenly, small green orbs of lights surrounded Dodrio like little planets revolving in the solar system and leaving trails of light like an intertwined web. Wes and Lunick stared shock-like while watching this magic. The light grew brighter and brighter until suddenly it went out like a light bulb and for a moment, Wes could have sworn he saw purple-black darkness leaving out of the Dodrio's body.

The Dodrio had lowered its three heads to the ground and stood motionless in place during the whole process. There was a deep silence; even Celebi was quiet though its wings were buzzing with anticipation. Suddenly, Wes immediately walked up to it.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Lunick said, not understanding at all what had just happened. Wes then raised his hand and placed it gently on one of the Dodrio's head. For a moment, Lunick though that Dodrio was going to peck and make Wes lose his hand. Instead, something miraculous happened. The head Wes was petting cooed softly in happiness and the other two heads immediately started to push around, wanting to be petted as well. They bumped their heads and tried to cuddle against Wes' head.

"Hey, stop it," Wes grumbled though he didn't try to push away the three heads. Celebi decided to join in the fun as well and tried to hug Wes. "Whoa, too many of you guys! Get off!"

For a moment, Lunick could've sworn that Wes smiled. Not the creepy thief smile but a rather kind one – the same one back in Krokka Tunnel when they both managed to release Wes' Umbreon and Espeon. It was strange to see Wes like this… Suddenly the moment was gone and Wes immediately walked over the Lunick.

"Looks like Dodrio is back to normal now." Lunick gave a meek stare at Dodrio before reaching out his hand as well though more hesitantly than Wes. Dodrio immediately crowed and cuddled with Lunick as well. Lunick sighed with relief.

"Y-yeah! He's definitely back to normal! Joel would be so happy!" Lunick said but then realized that Dodrio was now Wes' Pokemon… Joel didn't have any rights to the Pokemon…

"I'll release it back to its owner," Wes said as though he could read Lunick's mind. "Anyways, shouldn't we be worried about your Pokemon instead? Where is Minun?"

"Ah that's right!" Lunick said as though he just realized it and immediately started to panic. Why didn't Celebi save Minun too? Didn't Minun fall down the cliff as well? "Minun! Where are you?"

"What the hell are you yelling at?" Wes said, souding embarrassed that he was from the same species as this guy.

"I need to find Minun!" Lunick said, freaking out, "Minun must be scared and all alone and injured! What am I going to do? What am I going to do?" This time Lunick started to run around in circles and running his hands through his hair as though he was going to go mad with worry. Celebi immediately giggled at this new game and immediately flew around in circles over Lunick like some sort of green halo. On the other hand, Wes and Dodrio stared at the two like they were idiots.

"Hey calm down!" Wes said, not able to take it anymore, and grabbed Lunick so that he would stop. "We'll figure out something. Right now, the best solution is to stay calm. I mean, isn't that what a ranger is suppose to do?" Lunick took a deep breath and tried to swallow his fear.

"Y-yeah you're right. I'll stay calm."

"Wow," Wes said, feigning surprise, "_I'm right?_ You actually admitting I'm right?"

"Sh-shut up!" Lunick said, immediately regretting that he said such a thing. "You're only right this time!"

"Whatever," Wes said, shrugging his shoulders and apparently bored with teasing Lunick now.

"Bii!" Wes and Lunick noticed that Celebi was floating above them and wasn't pleased at the lack of attention it was getting like it did earlier. Then it lowered itself down a bit and immediately poked Lunick's cheek. Celebi giggled when Lunick tried to make a swipe for it but missed. Wes groaned at Lunick as he continued to chase the Pokemon.

"Think it wants to play," Wes said calmly. "Really," Wes said, grabbing Lunick by the collar of the ranger's red uniform jacket and looking calmly at Celebi, "We thank you for helping us but we're too busy to play. Maybe some other time." Celebi looked rather unhappy and buzzed its wings angrily.

"Soooo… what now?" Lunick muttered, pushing aside so that Wes would release his jacket. He was unsure what to do exactly after one encounters a legendary Pokemon, much less one that wasn't trying to kill you.

"Well, I'm guessing Minun is somewhere near the blast vicinity. If we go back to the factory, we'll find your Pokemon. Rui and your ranger friends should be there as well." Wes said this in a matter-of-fact logically which made Lunick feel stupid. However, Wes avoided bringing up the possibility that Rui, Solana, and Murph didn't make it. Wes himself didn't want to think about it either. This was one of the few times he was actually trying to look at the positive of things.

"Great, so what direction is that?" Lunick too was looking around as though hoping for a sign to help them point in the right direction. There were none. If Lunick didn't know, Wes certaintly didn't but he decided not to make a sarcastic remark this time. He, instead, eyed over at the unhappy Celebi and immediately had a plan. It was a long shot but hey, better than nothing.

"Say, Celebi, on second thought, want to play a game?" Lunick and Celebi immediately turned to Wes as though they couldn't believe what they were hearing. Much less from the very guy who doesn't even know the word 'fun'.

"Huh?"

"Bii?" Both Lunick and Celebi had the same expression on their faces and it would have made anyone laugh except Wes wasn't the kind who would.

"Simple," Wes said, giving a quick "Don't-say-anything" look at Lunick before turning back to Celebi. "We'll have a race. You versus Lunick and me on Dodrio. Finish line is the place where the factory was. The place where you saved our lives. How about it?"

"Whaa?" Lunick thought and opened his mouth to say something but was immediately shut by Wes' hand. Celebi placed one of its petite fingers to its lips as though contemplating the challenge. Then immediately, squealed and nodded its head in agreement.

"It just agreed like that?" Lunick whispered but Wes merely shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, we're getting a free tour guide. Besides we won't have to waste time waiting for you to capture a Pokemon who has any sense of direction, so don't complain," Wes said, climbing on top of the more obedient Dodrio. "Now hurry and get on. We got a race to lose."

…

_Deep within a temple…_

Deep underground there was a rather large wide open area. There were several cliffs on the side of this mountain like area with stairs leading up to four doors that were decorated with the symbols. In the center there was a large statue with four unlit stone torches leading up to it. The place was rather dark and chilly. However, it wasn't inactive and was rather bustling with activity. Go-Rock Squad members were running around with equipment as though getting ready to shoot a movie at the last minute. The sound of their hurried footsteps echoed like thunderous applause. The only four people who weren't even doing anything were the leaders of the group and were sitting rather bored-like in front of the statue in the center of the place.

The female, and the only one, in the group had stylish white and slightly wavy hair that went down to the back of her shoulders. She was wearing a flowing red robe that was open, revealing her tight purple tube one piece and a loose white belt on her waist. She was filing her nails as though she was rather bored and didn't seem to notice that one of the grunts was having a rather hard time carrying her shopping bags to her.

"Seriously Tiffany, why did you bring your shopping bags here?" the guy next to her asked. He had white hair that was slicked back and separated in the back into two thick strands so that they drooped down like a male style pigtails. This one had a rather muscular body and wore a blue trench coat that was open to reveal a purple t-shirt underneath. He also had blue pants held by a black belt. Overall, he had a cool and silent type of look on his face.

"Uh hello?" Tiffany said, waving her hands in front of the guy's face to show her perfectly manicured nails. "I didn't bring my shopping bags here. My slaves did. I'll break a nail if I did the work."

"You know what I mean you lazy bum," the cool guy scoffed.

"Excuse me?"

"Clyde, leave Tiffany alone," another voice said, who was sitting next to Clyde. This voice belonged to another guy but he was definitely different. He had soft white hair like Clyde but it was soft and layered in the back so that the bangs looked long in the front. He was wearing a white trench coat that was decorated with red flames on the bottom and was buttoned all the way up. He had a soft and gentle personality. "Don't tease sister that much. It's not that much of a hassle to bring the bags along with our eqipment."

"Yeah Clyde, listen to your brother Garret. He's much smarter than you," Tiffany said, sticking out her tongue toward Clyde who merely looked coolly back.

"And certainly way smarter than you too." Tiffany would've grabbed and choke her brother's throat had not been her other brother, Garret.

"Ha! Don't get so antsy guys," The fourth and final one of the group grinned and stood up. His hair was probably the wildest one of the group. He had white hair that stood up and parted to the side like large ears. He wore a black blazer with a frizzy pink collar and black slacks. He looked like he was in a rock band. There was a slight arrogant look on his face. "With this ingenious plan I, Billy, came up with, we'll become the strongest team in the whole world and everybody will bow down to us!" The guy pointed to Garret as if to cue him which she immediately took.

"Even if you're in a hurry, stop in your tracks!" Garret immediately took out his bass guitar and strummed a low catchy tune.

"Open your ears to our melodic attacks!" Tiffany continued the rhyme and took out her violin and played a melody in such a high octave that it sent goose bumps down one's skin.

"The rhythm of rage _pounds _to the _ground_," Clyde continued and took out his Conga drums and pound the bottom of his hands against the drumhead in a quick and fast pace motion.

"Let the melody of ambition _rise _to the _skies_!" Billy said, taking out his electric guitar and strummed against the strings in a rock band style. "For we are-!"

"The Go-Rock Quads!" The four siblings concluded and all played the same tune they had earlier only this time together. Soon a harmonic music was created. Immediately, confetti fell from the top of the building and covered them. Of course, none of the other Go-Rock Squad members noticed this. They apparently had to deal with this too many times to even care anymore.

"You know, why is it that most mottos rhyme?" Tiffany asked. "I mean is there a point for that?"

"Who cares?" Clyde said, looking aloof. Garrent remained quiet and didn't respond.

"People who can rhyme are obviously smart," Billy said, "Making up lyrics is a genius' work."

"Tee-hee," Tiffany giggled, covering her mouth with her hand, "I don't know about rhyming but I'll admit Billy that your plans are ingenious. Even Cipher Team accepted our genius teamwork with your brilliant schemes. Dad was so happy when we told him."

"Well, we are still missing the final piece," Billy said, frowning slightly. "Until we get the 'okay' from the boss, we can't truly continue with the plan."

"Don't worry," Clyde said, "There is no way that all our hard work will go to waste." He flipped his hair back as though trying to act cool.

"I hope your right," Garret said quietly and looked up at the statue that they were sitting under. It was made from faded colored stone but creature looked proud and majestic standing on four legs with massive white paws. Its brown fur flowed as though wind was blowing through it. On its back the statue creature had a cape flowing in the shape of white smoke. Its eyes would have been passionately burning if it was alive. "If all goes to plan, the legendary Pokemon will be under our control."

…

_Fall City…_

"It can't be…" Professor Hastings muttered not believing his eyes as he stared at the strange device on his groaning table which was already holding many things already. He was in his room which was clustered with papers along with pens and pencils that were scattered everywhere. There was a lamp that brightened the dim room. Hastings adjusted his magnify glass to see the specific details inside. He looked at the broken pieces that Wes had given him earlier and the one that they took from their prisoner. If he put the broken parts into its original shape, the intricate design was exactly alike as the one that wasn't broken. However, this wasn't what was bugging Hastings. No, it was something much deeper. If his suspicion was true… why, they were in greater danger than he thought.

"Professor, are you almost finished?" A voice called from the other side of the door along with a knock. The door slowly opened and there stood Keith. He looked rather tired as though he didn't get any sleep last night. In his hand was a cup of coffee which was steaming slightly, giving an aroma flavor.

"Almost, almost," Professor Hastings said, trying to hide his worried voice and forced a smile on his face. "How is Joel?"

"A bit better. He can get up now though he will still need those bandages. I brought coffee for you," Keith said, changing the subject, and then added. "I made sure no sleeping pills were added."

"Oh good, good," Hastings muttered, "Just set it down somewhere." Keith looked around and frowned. Exactly where can he set cup down without toppling over and spilling its content all over the ground? Finally, with much difficulty, Keith placed the coffee on top of the desk after he pushed away a stack of magazines which were sent spilling across the floor. Keith looked uneasy but Hastings didn't seem to notice.

"So what's happening now?" Professor Hastings asked as he continued to look at the instruments on his desk.

"Well, we still haven't cleared the tunnel yet," Keith said. "But we're almost there. Also, Aria is interrogating the suspect. We'll let you know if we got something good."

"Oh okay," Professor Hastings said, nodding absently. And Keith quietly left. As soon as the door slammed shut. Hastings leaned back against his chair and groaned. He rubbed his eyes, feeling the fatigueless catching up to his old body. He looked up at the ceiling and looked at the pieces of tiles. How in the world was he going to solve this problem? He moved his chair back and noticed a strip sheet of paper fall to the ground. When he picked it up, he saw that scrawled on it in quick but fluid handwriting was the email address. That was when Hastings remembered that this was Wes'. Hastings had totally forgotten to give that guy a call. He'll send an email while taking a stroll outside. He could feel his legs falling asleep. The man got up and pulled on his white lab coat over his purple suit. He then grabbed his cane which he expertly used to take off his purple top hat off the hat rack, went out the door, and almost bumped into Aria.

"Professor Hastings!" Aria said sounding surprised and out of breath. Her golden blond curly hair was glittering brilliantly under the light that Hastings, who had been holed up in his dark room all day, squinted from the brightness.

"Oh yes, hello," Professor Hastings said, clearing his throat and straightening his tie. "I thought you were still interrogating information out of that guy, or are you done?"

"Well, we're still beating information out of him," Aria said calmly.

"Not literally I hope," Hastings said in a joking matter.

"No professor, we literally are beating information out of him." Aria said, still looking dead serious. "He admitted that he and some others were responsible for attacking Joel earlier and stole his Dodrio though he claimed that a silver hair kid took it from him." Hastings noticed that Aria's hands were in tight fists and looked like they have been recently used to hit someone.

"Oh dear," Hastings thought, looking thoroughly scared. "I better remember not to cross her. But then again, after all these years, I should know this already."

"Well, judging by the description they gave, I'm guessing Wes was the one who retrieved Dodrio so we shouldn't worry too much. We'll be able to get it back from him (I hope). And, now that I think about it, what are you doing out here?" Hastings asked, trying not to have fear in his voice.

"I got really good information from that low life. I need to use the Dragonite Bus to get to Ring Town," Aria said, leaving.

"Wait hold on," Hastings said, sounding shock. "What do you mean?"

"There was an interesting piece of information the guy gave us," Aria said. "Something about a factory in Lyra Forest."

"Factory?" Hastings said, not understanding a word Aria was saying now. "I don't remembering any news about a factory being built in the forest."

"Precisely," Aria said though Hastings merely gave a blank stare.

"Listen professor," Aria said, "Joel told me the whole story about Solana and Murph and their mission. My guess is that they got in trouble when they found this factory which was built in secret. This factory is probably the key in solving many questions we've been having. I'm going to find Wes and Lunick to get some answers. Especially with that perverted kid." Aria remembered the last time she saw that white-hair kid. His cold merciless eyes glaring back at her as though the thought of killing her had not crossed his mind.

"Did Joel allow this?" Professor Hastings asked cautiously. Aria sighed and shrugged.

"I sort of did. He told me to go though I have to bring someone. Unfortunately, everybody is needed here. I figure I could just leave anyways." Immediately, Hastings came up with a brilliant idea. Sending an email to Wes seemed too risky and won't answer the many questions the professor had ever since he started to study the stylers.

"Well in that case, I'll come with you," Professor Hastings said immediately. "We can't break Joel's rule so I'll be your partner."

"What?" Aria said, looking shocked. "But professor, you're needed here!"

"Please," the man said, waving his hand toward his office door behind him. "I've been coped up in there too long. Besides, that Wes kid and I need to have a chat as well. I don't think an email will explain everything I've discovered."

"What?" This time Aria sounded shock. "What is it that you discovered?"

"Shhh," Hastings said, looking around to make sure they weren't overheard. "They are merely guesses. I don't feel comfortable talking about it until I'm absolutely sure they're correct. I need information from Wes first." Aria stared at the professor but the man refused to say anymore as he continued to stroke his trimmed cut beard.

"Very well," Aria sighed. Her curiosity got the best of her. "Then let's go and get prepared. No doubt we're going on a dangerous mission, even more than usual."

…

Wes and Lunick were riding on Dodrio after Celebi who was flitting to and fro past trees. Wes gave Dodrio strict orders to run fast enough to catch up with Celebi but not fast enough so that they were in the lead. Wes could tell that Dodrio was frustrated despite following orders. After all, the forest's roots and branches were making it difficult to move around for a bird Pokemon that was used to running in wide open space. Celebi was smiling and enjoy the fact that it was 'winning.' It even did a couple of loop-de-loops while flying but it was more of a distraction in Wes' opinion. Still, they were making good time compared to if they had decided to walk around aimlessly.

Suddenly, Wes' PDA gave a ringing sound that mad the guy almost jumped in surprise. Lunick looked surprised as well. "What's that sound?" Lunick asked looking Wes since it sounded like the noise was coming from him.

"My PDA. Someone must have sent a message to me," Wes said calmly, taking it out of his pocket. He took out the strange large bulky electronic item and opened it. "Oh, it's from that old man."

"What? Professor Hasting?" Lunick asked, sounding angry that Wes wasn't sounding a bit polite but nevertheless, curiosity got the best of him. "What does it say?"

Wes didn't say anything for a moment and then, "Wow, I get really good reception here. I wonder how that is possible if we're in the middle of nowhere… Maybe if I tinker with a couple of other electronic gadgets I can see-"

"That's not important!" Lunick said, sounding annoyed now, "What does the message say?" Wes rolled his eyes but opened the email.

"Professor Hastings said that he was coming over. 'Have some important information that I need to discuss with you. We need to talk face to face.'"

"Information? Is it on this Cipher group?" Lunick asked, wide eyed.

"Don't know," Wes said, sounding mysterious as always as he continued to read the email. "Oh yes, someone named 'Aria' is coming as well."

"A-ARIA?" Lunick's sudden outburst made Dodrio squawked in shock and almost tripped over a tree root.

"You don't need to scream," Wes said in annoyance.

"B-but if Aria is coming, then we're doomed!" Lunick said, the idea of pure torture coming into his mind. If Minun was with them, the little mouse Pokemon would have had the same expression and gesture as Lunick.

"Who's this Aria?" Wes asked, sounding more annoyed than curious.

"You don't remember! That blond hair girl back in Fall City. You know, the one who was supposed to keep an eye on us! She definitely came to kill us!" Wes fell into thoughtful silent and remembered vaguely of some blond hair arrogant girl who called him a pervert. Of course, her face was kind of hazy in his mind but it was not like he cared. He didn't try to remember names of people he deemed to be not important.

"Oh please," Wes said, rolling his eyes. "You actually think-" Wes didn't say anything after that because he suddenly found himself flying off Dodrio and face first onto the ground. His PDA flew from his hand and landed several feet away from him. There was a crash and when Wes got up he noticed that Dodrio had tripped over something and screeched in pain. Lunick fell right next to Dodrio and the ranger was groaning in pain.

"Owwww, what happened? Did Dodrio trip over something?" Lunick said, rubbing his head. However, Wes didn't say anything and quickly got up despite his arm feeling like it was broken. Celebi was too busy to notice what happened and was already leaving. They got to get back on or else they'll lose their way in this forest forever. The thief picked up his PDA which looked like it was broken but Wes didn't care too much and went over to Dodrio to look at its feet. Wes needed to see what had caused Dodrio to collapse so quickly and unexpectedly. To Wes' shock, it wasn't what he thought to be. It was no tree root that caused Dodrio to fall over. The Pokemon's legs were both injured as though something had attacked them. Most likely an Iron Tail… Immediately, Wes' body tightened as though ready for combat and immediately looked around his surroundings. Whoever it was, they were hiding in the forest pretty good for Wes could only see trees and tall bushes. There was a killing intent in the air that made Wes shiver with excitement. However, he knew that with the silence around them, Wes will figure out where the next attack will strike.

"Wes?" Lunick said, trying to get up, "What's going-?"

"Stay on your guard," Wes said; shushing him, "Someone is attacking-!" There it was. Wes saw it from the corner of his eye and managed to jump out of the way as a giant blast slammed against the ground, leaving a huge crater.

"Wes!" Lunick said, grabbing his Styler out, and immediately got away again as another attack came, this time, aiming for Lunick. The ranger immediately looked around, hoping for a wild Pokemon he could use to help him out. Immediately, Wes took out his Poke ball to release his Espeon. He pointed in the direction where the attack was coming from. Espeon looked well rested after taking a break from its Poke ball.

"Psybeam!" Wes ordered and there was a blast of brilliant colorful light that went straight to the bush that Wes was pointing at. Immediately, a large shadow got knocked out of the bush and fell to the ground. Wes immediately identified the Pokemon as the grass/fighting type Pokemon – Breloom. The Pokemon was immediately knocked by the psychic attack. Wes immediately felt his blood go cold. He knew this Breloom. How many times has he battle against this one to train his Pokemon…

"Impressive," a gruff voice said from behind, "Your skills haven't dropped down a notch since the last time we battled. However, you seemed to have fallen quite a bit behind as a strategist." Wes and Espeon immediately turned, both recognizing this hostile voice.

In front of Wes was a giant muscular bald man with a small red vest. His entire body was covered in scars. He had headphones on though he definitely wasn't listening to music. His wild mustache and eyebrows were the same as always.

However, Wes noticed, to his horror, that the man had one of his arms squeezing around Lunick's neck and dangled the boy high in the air. The ranger was gasping for short quick breaths of air while his arms uselessly try to pull the muscular arm away from his neck. Right next to him, Wes recognized the man's purple Granbull holding down squawking Dodrio. Wes immediately recognized the trap and cursed himself for not noticing it sooner. So… this was a hostage situation. Kind of cowardly of him. Maybe he was really desperate.

"Don't move," the man said, "Not unless you want me to break this boy's neck."

Wes lowered his arms to the ground and stood up straight, surrendering immediately. Espeon sat down elegantly and stood still though its eyes were furious. One false move on Gonzap's part and Espeon will see to it personally that he will be sent flying into the air.

"Gonzap," Wes said coldly, glaring unemotionally at the man's eyes.

"I see you escaped death not just once but twice," Gonzap said; his tone was hard to place. Wes couldn't tell if Gonzap was proud or furious. "You and I have so much to catch up on."

**Author's Notes**

Dun, dun, dun! Looks like things are going to get really ugly. Really, really ugly.

Man, Lunick gets in so much trouble. Don't worry, he'll have a bigger role later on and be less useless. XP

I really REALLY didn't like the Go-Rock Quads introduction every time you saw them together. Took forever just to finish it and I only wrote the simplified version. It was even worse than Team Rocket's repeated anime motto. At least theirs was less than a minute of pure torture. I was like "NOOOOOOO!" every time I saw them and started to smash the A button on my DS as fast as possible. Don't worry, I'm not going to say their motto too much. _Or will I?_ lol.

Well, in other news, they're going to make a new Pokemon game. I'm guessing Grey version. Though I wonder what kind of changes will they make if they do make that version.

Well, this is the end of the chapter before the hiatus. I hope you all will continue to read after the hiatus is over. Be sure to check out news in my forum to make sure. :D

Now to thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**littlmidget123**

**Ahkalia**

**Trainer-Ken**

…

That's it from me. I'll see you after the hiatus. (sad face)

**-JapanDreamer**


	13. A Small Reunion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.**

Hey everybody, guess what? The hiatus is over! Whoo!

This chapter isn't as long as I would usually do it but it is eventful. We were kind of left at a cliffhanger. XP

Anyways, enjoy!

**Chapter 12:**

_Ring Town…_

Murph was standing guard while he watched Solana fast asleep in the bed at Ring Town Ranger Base. Well, even though he was standing guard, Murph was actually sitting in a small wooden chair and his Slowpoke was next to him.

Solana was in a pretty bad condition. She was heavily bandaged and had been given some pain killers to ease the discomfort. She finally slept after being told constantly that there it was suicide if she tried to go back to help Spenser and Rui and that rest was the number one priority. Murph sighed in worrisome thoughts, hoping Spenser and that red-haired Rui girl came back soon with good news. When Solana woke up, Murph didn't want to be the one to mention Solana that the reason Spenser and Rui were still at the sight was because they were searching for Wes and Lunick. Whether or not they made it… It was times like these that Murph wished he was strong. He couldn't believe how pathetically weak he was compared to everybody else. Even Lunick was a better ranger even though the guy came to their base only a while back. Murph was supposed to be Lunick's senior but it seemed to be more like Lunick was his.

Murph hoped that things were all right. For Solana's sakes and for everybody else's.

…

_Somewhere in Lyra Forest…_

Celebi was buzzing through the forest as it flew in a zigzag manner past the trees. It giggled a bit, clearly knowing that it was winning in the race. Turning its head slightly back, it suddenly realized a problem and stopped – the people who were racing with Celebi disappeared. Did they give up and left Celebi by itself? Celebi immediately pouted and frowned in frustration.

"Biii!" The little grass Pokémon fluttered around in a circle, making some sort of pixie dust halo trailing after it. Despite its irritation, the Pokémon sourly waiting for the two boys, hoping they would show up again so it could teach them a lesson or two, but after a while the two still didn't show up. The forest was dead silence despite the occasional buzzing of Pokémon. Then curiously, and slightly worried, the Pokémon quickly flew back on the path it came. What happened? Surely they didn't just decide to give up on playing the game?

…

"I see you managed to find your Pokemon," Gonzap said, inclining his head to Espeon. "I'm relieved to see that." Espeon responded with angry glare for it could still remember the pain. The red jewel on its forehead was glowing brightly; it was ready and eager to strike.

"I understand using them as bait, but this is a new low, even for you to use a ranger as a hostage against me?" Wes asked coldly. "Do you think that will actually work against me?" Lunick hoped Wes was bluffing when he said this. The ranger could almost feel his neck snapping in half. It was times like these that he wished he had Minun or at least owned a Pokémon liked Wes did to help out.

"Please," Gonzap snapped back at Wes, "You two were working together. You were in Team Snagem long enough for me to know that you value your teammates' lives. I don't need to be a genius to know what's going on in your head." Espeon growled angrily in response, but Wes looked down and waved his hand slightly to let Espeon know to stop and hold back… at least for now.

"Like the time you knew I was going to blow up the base," Wes said in a steely voice looking back at Gonzap. "I must say, you must have had pretty nasty shocked look on your face when I took this prototype device." Wes pointed at the armor shaped machine on his left arm.

"You shouldn't have done that," Gonzap said quietly. He gazed at the machine with scorching intensity. Lunick felt like he was in the midst of an intense father and son argument. He had been in a few with his own father and felt like this was something personal and shouldn't be eavesdropped into but when taken hostage, Lunick didn't really have much choice in the matter.

"But I did," Wes fired back and crossed his arms across his chest as though he was tired of this useless chitchat, "So what's with this reunion? You look pretty desperate to sit down and have a small talk."

"Don't act like an idiot," Gonzap snapped, "I know you just as well as you know me to know what I want." There was a deaden silence the filled the forest area. Wes looked at the slightly blue Lunick and thought carefully of his options. Saying the wrong thing and Gonzap might break the poor guy's neck. As much as he didn't care about Lunick's health at the moment, Wes couldn't just let it slide if the poor ranger got killed because of him.

More importantly, in Wes' opinion, Gonzap's Granbull was still holding down that Dodrio. The bird was giving up right now and wasn't struggling as much as Lunick still was. Wes was going to need Dodrio if they were going to continue to chase Celebi. Now that Wes thought about it, where was that Pokémon? Gonzap didn't mention anything about the Pokémon so it was safe to say that he didn't see it, probably because it blended so well with the forest.

Wes contemplated about the situation before him. Celebi was gone and hopefully realized the situation and disappeared for good for its sake. However, Wes still needed to figure out a way to get out of this tiresome situation. Gonzap didn't say anything about hurting Lunick if Wes had refused Gonzap's proposal... Might as well take advantage of the situation and try to get information out of the man.

"The answer is no," Wes said smoothly though his tone was laced with just enough anger to suggest hostility. "I'm flying solo now and I don't need your group of thieves to bring me down." Lunick wondered if Wes realized he was being hypocritical for saying that. Apparently, Gonzap thought so too.

"Flying solo?" Gonzap snapped. "Don't make me laugh. You've been hanging out with that Rui girl of yours. And don't say she's not your partner. You two have been thwarting Cipher's ever since you guys decided to team up. Not to mention you also partnering up these pathetic rangers who are tagging along with you like useless baggage. You don't need to work with losers like them."

"HEY!" Lunick choked out, trying to hurt his perpetrator in any means possible. "Don't you dare... say that!" Gonzap looked at Wes with a 'See?' look on his face. Wes shrugged as though he couldn't really argue with Gonzap's logic. "WES!" Lunick gasped out, furious that Wes wasn't defending him. "Don't just… ignore me!" Wes glared at him with a sharp penetrating glace as though trying to convey a message to the ranger.

"Quiet you!" Gonzap growled and tightened his hold on Lunick to shut him up. Lunick gagged in response.

"What's your point?" Wes continued, looking back at Gonzap. "I'll admit I have teamed up, but as you know me, I prefer to work with people who were actually good at their jobs." Lunick stared in puzzled amazement at Wes. Did the guy… just praised Lunick?

"Team Snagem is not like before," Gonzap said harshly, "We're better now! We have gone far and are becoming notorious for our crimes."

"What does that mean? You can't expect me to believe Fiore region has anything great to offer. If anything, Orre would've been a better choice or has Cipher gone desperate enough to attack other regions?"

"Don't underestimate Cipher," Gonzap said, "This is just the beginning of the whole grand scheme. What you saw was just the surface of what we can do." After a slight pause, Gonzap continued, "Wes, you can be a part of it as well. Join us. With you, we can achieve what we always dreamed of sooner than you can imagine."

"By becoming the grunt work of others? Please," Wes scoffed though his mind was already spinning with what he was hearing.

Wes knew that Gonzap still cared about him as a family member but with that matter aside, Wes knew that the man hadanother reason for calling this meeting. _He is desperate_, Wes thought. He could recognize the faint hint in the man's tone of voice.

The master plan, whatever it was, was either taking too long or was going very bad. However, Gonzap obviously didn't know what it was or didn't know much to help Wes which was such a pity since it would have made things so much easier. Team Snagem was only probably told to do the grunt work but was getting chewed out since they were doing a bad job (courtesy of Wes and Lunick). But he wasn't surpised; Wes knew how Cipher worked – there was no such thing as partnership when making an alliance. Back when he was still a member of Team Snagem, Wes knew that they were merely used as pawns when Gonzap announced that they were joining forces with Cipher. Of course, the old coot was too stubborn to believe it. However, there was a missing piece to the puzzle and Wes knew that Gonzap was hiding it on purpose.

"This isn't an alliance between just two groups," Wes said. "There's a third part in play." Lunick gaped. What? There were more than one group involved? Since when? Of course, since Lunick wasn't from the Orre region, he was pretty much confused at all these new characters jumping into the story.

"You're sharp Wes as always," Gonzap chuckled for the first time. Lunick was surprised at this man. He sounded… proud.

"It doesn't take a genius to realize it when they see some other group walking around with his stolen Pokemon." This time Wes wasn't even trying to hide his anger. His calm amber eyes blazed with incredibly fury. "For that, you're going to pay."

The next thing Gonzap knew was that his Granabull screamed in pain as an invisible attacked hit it. Dodrio used this chance to escape, slightly hitting Gonzap in the process. The muscled man was so surprised at the situation that he loosened his grip just enough for Lunick to escape as well.

"Give me a warning next time!" Lunick said as he rubbed his neck. Dodrio gave Wes a grateful nudge for the trainer's help before turning to face Gonzap. Its three heads squawked in anger and it clawed the ground with its legs as though ready to charge. It looked rather frightening but Gonzap didn't even flinch at the sight. Luckily, Lunick managed to calm the Dodrio down a bit.

"Well, I figured the glare I gave you earlier was enough. Still you were sharp enough to understand what I was going to do," Wes replied calmingly. Espeon's red jewel had stopped glowing. Wes turned back to Gonzap who was just recovering from his shock. "I may have misjudged you earlier with your ambush but it doesn't mean I can't figure out a good counterattack. And just so you know, Espeon's Future Sight attack has gotten better in accuracy." With that, to Lunick's surprise, Wes returned his Espeon back into its Pokeball, turned his back to Gonzap, and got on Dodrio before turning to Lunick. "Let's go."

"Hey! Wait!" Lunick said, shocked at Wes' lack of intention to fight. "This guy works for those people. Don't you want to… I dunno take revenge on him or something?"

"No. But if you want to do that be my guest," Wes said shrugging his shoulders, "Just don't expect me to save you again from your stupidity."

"HEY!" Wes was going back to insulting Lunick again.

"Besides he only wanted to talk," Wes said, looking back at Gonzap, "As much as I wish to punch him, I do owe him a favor."

"Huh?" Lunick looked confused now at the two. "What do you mean?" But Gonzap merely stood there. He knew what Wes meant. Wes knew what length Gonzap had done to protect Espeon and Umbreon from shadowificiation.

"Fine, I get it," Lunick finally said though he didn't 'get it' yet he knew that he wasn't going to get a clear cut explanation. However, there was one thing for sure. Something bad was going to happen and this Gonzap was going make sure it happens. Lunick turned to Gonzap, pointed threateningly at the man, and said,

"Hey! I got a message for your secret boss!" Gonzap and Wes looked surprise at Lunick's demand as he continued, "Even though I have no idea what is going on, tell him… or her since I'm not going to discriminate against genders… that I have no intent in letting you guys do as you please. None of the rangers are going to back down and Fiore is ready to retaliate so be prepared!" With that Lunick jumped on Dodrio's back and puffed his chest in anger. "There, I said it."

"Pah! Wes, don't you see who you're siding with? I'm only giving you this one chance to come back," Gonzap said. "You can't stop us. No one can." Wes didn't look at Gonzap. Instead, the young trainer put on his metal platted goggles.

"Really? Well, tell your new boss that ditto what Lunick said." With that Dodrio sped off with Wes and Lunick on its back and they soon disappeared in the clearing of the forest, leaving Gonzap alone in the cool forest.

There was a beeping noise that came from Gonzap's pocket. The man took out his phone which had a secure line. There was only one person who had a number; he picked it up immediately. "Yes?"

"Phase two is about to begin shortly," the voice said on the other line. "Make your way to the Jungle Relic." With that the phone line went dead and Gonzap slowly put it back into his pocket. He turned to stare at the spot where Wes and his ranger friend had just stood moments ago.

"Fool," Gonzap muttered, "fool."

**Author Notes**

Looks like Wes is now officially the cool main character. Lol.

Well now, next chapter, everything will come together and we'll finally get to the main conflict of the story…

Anyways, nothing much to say except to thank our reviewers before I go…

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**Trainer-Ken**

**littlemiget123**

**ZXCVBNMEM**

…

That's it from me. Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	14. Elita's Appearance

**Disclaimer: I can't own Pokemon.**

Well, it certainty has been a while since I last updated this story. Been extremely busy and unfortunately, going to be even more busy later on.

Nothing much to say except we're wrapping up for the next arc so enjoy!

**Chapter 13:**

_Ring Town..._

Murph was surprised to hear the news of the arrival of Professor Hastings but nevertheless, provided a gracious welcome. The thin man looked so minuscule compared the large Dragonite that was used for transportation. The Pokemon then spread its small wings and after several large gusts of wind, flew back into the sky and disappeared. It was as though it had never come.

"Professor Hastings!" Murph said, "Welcome. And before you ask, Solana is fine and sleeping though the doctor said no visitors allowed."

"Murph, good to see that you're still alive! I'm really relieved about Solana too! Where is Spenser?" After giving Murph a hearty handshake, the professor looked around as he adjusted his monocle as though expecting Spenser to pop out anytime.

"He is, uhh, still out." Murph really didn't know what to say.

"Out? But you and Solana came back right? What's the need of being out still?"

"Uhhh…" Murph fell silent as he tried to gather his thoughts.

"What are you hiding?" Another voice, much higher and more feminine, spoke up from behind Professor Hastings. Murph froze with fear. He knew that voice!

"A-Aria!" Murph sputtered. Aria was one of the few people Murph truly feared. The curly blond hair girl was very headstrong and talented. She was the best ranger (besides Joel) in Fall City and one of the few top female rangers in the region. This status made her quite proud and thus, she tended to boss low level rangers (like Murph) around.

"Don't just stand there!" Aria exclaimed. "Get us up-to-date! We heard from Spenser a while back about what happened with you and Solana in Lyra Forest. What happened?"

"It's a long story…" Murph muttered, not daring to look Aria in the eye.

"If you haven't noticed, I'm not that busy," Aria said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Start talking chubby."

"Aria," Hastings interrupted, "Let's get inside first. I could use a cup of tea. Could you get one for me Murph?"

"Oh yes, sure!" Murph said quickly, "Absolutely." With a breath of relief, the ranger quickly left.

"Don't worry," Hastings said before Aria could protest, "Spenser will come back soon and probably explain the whole thing. Besides, our other fellow important friends aren't here either." It was true; Aria noticed that there was nobody around in the Ring Town's Ranger base besides Murph and several of the locals who live here.

"Murph said Solana is okay right?" Aria tried to sound casual as though she really didn't care too much about her fellow ranger's wellbeing.

"Yes," Hastings said, sighing in sadness, "I can't believe something like this has happened to her. A ranger shouldn't have suffered something like this."

"Still this incident acts as evidence of what I've been suspecting."

"What is that?" Hastings didn't like the grim sound in Aria's voice.

"After Joel's incident, I've realized… that these people, whoever they are, will not hesitate to use any force necessary to stop us if we decide to stand in their way." There was an immediately chill running down Hastings' spine. Aria was right. Solana's and Joel's critical injuries proved Aria's point. Whoever these people were, they weren't going to be playing by the book and when the times come, everybody had to be prepared for the worst.

"What are we going to do?"

"What do you think? We're going to stop them," Aria's voice was harsh and angry. "I'm going to show them personally what happens when they mess with us rangers, and they are going to regret they ever decided to step into our territory."

…

_Deep within Lyra Forest…_

"Hey, want to fill in the blanks?" Lunick asked while rubbing his neck. He could still feel the lingering pressure numbness from where the mustache man was choking him.

Wes ignored Lunick's question and was determined to search in careful eye on every detail of the forest. Wes didn't think Gonzap would have another trap laid out for them but the teenager wasn't going to take any chances. Not to mention that they were completely lost and he would need to use every flora and fauna life as a landmark to determine where they should be going.

"Wes!" Lunick snapped angrily.

Sorry, but I don't feel like talking." Wes didn't sound like he was sorry though.

"If you haven't noticed I've been in the dark for quite some time. I'm sick and tired of it."

"Good, then stay in there. It'll give me some peace and quiet." Wes wished he had brought headphones or earplugs, anything in order to stop hearing the annoying rambling from Lunick. Wes would rather hear the grinding noises in The Under back in Orre than a ranger's nonstop chatter.

"Who is this Gonzap?" Lunick was tired of going about the roundabout way and decided for direct approach.

"Some guy." That response took at least a minute.

"Some guy? You make him sound like he is an average Joe or something. He could be a professional wrestler with those muscles! He almost choked me to death!"

"Starting to wish he did," Wes muttered but Lunick didn't hear him.

"How do you know him?"

"Orre." Lunick was starting to get fed up with Wes' one answer responses.

"Do you dodge attacks as well as you dodge questions?" Wes didn't reply to that question. Finally fed up, Lunick then grabbed Wes by the collar of his jacket and turned the white hair guy so that they were staring face to face. Wes's amber eyes looked annoyed and fearless at Lunick's blazing hot eyes.

"Lunick, let go."

"Wes, what that mustache dude said about their grand scheme, I know it's not a joke. Whatever they are planning its bad and they're doing this where I live. My friends, the other rangers, the people who live here, the Pokemon... everyone I know and care about are going to be affected. I can't just… sit on the sideline and feel hopeless." Lunick remembered how Joel was lying unconscious in Fall City, how Wes' Espeon and Umbreon were suffering from cruel treatment, how Solana was held hostage and tortured by these people. "I don't want someone else to get hurt."

After a long silence (Dodrio decided to stop walking after noticing this scene), Wes sighed in resignation and pushed Lunick away so the guy would release his hands from Wes' long blue coat. "Very well. I'll tell you. However-" Wes added when Lunick was about to open his mouth. "I rather not repeat the same boring story over and over again so I ask that you wait until everybody is assembled. At the very least, questions won't be repeated."

"Everybody else?"

"Professor Hastings, Spenser, and any other people who are involved in this already. Besides, I'm pretty sure Professor Hastings would be very interested in what I have to say."

"So, you promise that you'll tell?" Lunick demanded suspiciously.

"Cross my heart if that'll get you to shut up," Wes replied while rolling his eyes. Lunick was about to give back a snappy retort when he spotted something glowing in the forest. At first, Lunick thought it was the trick of the light until…

"Hey, it's Celebi!" Lunick gaped.

"Biii!" The little green fairy Pokemon shot out through the forest as it looked frantically around for its friends. It was moving so fast that it almost crashed into Wes and Lunick, causing Dodrio to stumble and almost crash to a nearby tree. Celebi would've tumbled to the ground had not Lunick instinctively reached out to grab it.

"Hey there! We've been looking all over for you!" Lunick rubbed Celebi's head like some sort of stuffed Poke doll. "Where were you?"

The little Pokemon buzzed around angrily and used its tiny hands to bop Lunick and Wes on their heads. How dare they suddenly disappeared and made it worried to tears! Not that it was crying of course! It was merely an expression.

"OW!" Lunick exclaimed though it surprised him more than hurt him. "What was that for?"

"Well, what do you know?" Wes muttered, not believing what he was seeing. "Looks like luck is still on our side."

…

Spenser felt uneasy as he looked down around him. After a tedious climb down, the Ring Town ranger wasn't able to find a single person thought there were quite a few large rocks lying about. Fearow perched on Spenser's shoulders and glared its beady eyes into the dark forest.

Spenser prayed that Lunick and Wes had landed farther from the explosion though the chances of finding them uninjured and alive from the blast and the fall were getting slimmer by the second. This required a large scope search, something Spenser didn't want to do without the proper equipment and people. Spenser had no choice but to head back up and wait for the backup that Murph was supposed to get.

Suddenly, there was a large ominous rustling sound in the forest. Spenser indistinctively reached for his Capture Styler on his belt and turned to face into the darkness of the forest where the noise was coming from. His Fearrow was about to strike as well when it suddenly recognize a familiar face.

"Lunick?" The exhausted ranger looked up at the sound of his name and couldn't be more relived to see whose voice it was. He jumped off of Dodrio and raced toward Spenser.

"Ranger Lunick, reporting back from duty and quite alive," Lunick grinned as he saluted.

"But how?" Spenser looked as though he was seeing ghosts but then finally had a relived look on his face as his brain finally processed what he was seeing.

"No need to sound that surprise," Wes said as he got off the Dodrio and returned it back to its Poke ball. "Spenser, has Professor Hasting arrived?" Wes was quick to the point.

"H-Hastings?"

"I received text that he was coming to Ring Town to discuss something important," Wes said, holding up his PDA.

"Wes! Are you heartless? Shouldn't you be asking about everybody else?" Lunick exclaimed. He turned to Spenser again. "What happened to Solana, Murph, that red hair girl, and-? MINUN! Oh no! Did you find Minun?"

"Calm down Lunick," Spenser said as Lunick continued talk so fast that he was spraying spit everywhere, "We found Minun. Rui has him and is waiting for the two of you. Murph took Solana back to Ring Town."

"Is she okay?" Lunick demanded. Spenser fell silent and attempted to smile.

"She is heavily injured but a week's worth of rest and she'll be fine." It sounded more like Spenser was trying to convince himself.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Lunick exclaimed. He was finding himself filled with more worry than before. "Let's get out of here!"

"Wait!" Spenser exclaimed. "Don't start climbing on that cliff; it's dangerous!" Watching Spenser trying to drag Lunick back to the ground while the ranger tried to grab onto the unstable side of the cliff, Wes decided to give up on getting an answer to his question and turned to stare back at the forest. The darkness of the place gave a strange feeling. Not ominous, but it did feel like there was something this place was hiding still. For just a moment, Wes could've sworn he saw a green ball of light twinkled in the shadows before disappearing.

"Thanks Celebi."

…

Rui couldn't believe her eyes when she saw Lunick and Wes climbing up. Fearrow brought up a rope to the top of the cliff, and once Rui realized what the rope was for, she grabbed onto it and tied it to a nearby tree so that everybody could safely come up.

"Wes!" Rui squealed and rushed forward to hug the guy while knocking Lunick away in the process. "I-I thought-! I thought you were…!" She started to sob, unable to hold back her tears. Wes quickly, but gently pushed Rui away. Umbreon came up and rubbed against Wes' leg and giving a slight purring noise.

"Good to see everybody looking at the bright side of things," Wes said in a slight sarcastic tone, but he gave Rui an awkward pat on the head to calm her down and returned Umbreon back into its Poke ball. Lunick couldn't help but give a skeptical look.

"Wes, your girlfriend is so happy to see you and that's all you can do?"

"Lunick!" Rui said, turning bright red. She punched Lunick on the shoulder. "Stop saying ridiculous things!"

"OW! I was just teasing!" Lunick complained. "There is no way he would want a girlfriend."

"Hey Lunick," Spenser called out before Rui could do some more serious damage. "I think 'someone' wants to see you." He held up a little small Pokemon that looked a lot like…

"Minun!" Lunick exclaimed. He held the exhausted and wounded Pokemon who made an attempt to give a hearty grin. "Thank goodness you're still alive!"

"Spenser, have you figure out how we're going back?" Wes said, sounding slightly annoyed now as he rubbed the back of his head in frustration.

"Yes, I told Murph to get backup earlier. I just hope they are able to come soon."

"They?" It was at that moment that Wes noticed that there was a large shadow up in the sky. Wes couldn't make out what he was supposed to be looking at since the sun was in his eyes but Wes could guess that this was the backup.

"What's going on?" Rui asked.

"Spenser!" Immediately, the shadow landed onto the ground. Once the dust settled, Wes realized that he was facing a steel bird Skarmory whose bladed wings gleamed against the light remaining on this day. Its shiny beak was piercing sharp like a knife. This Skarmory was larger than the ones Wes had seen before. With its wingspan, it could easily carry them all back to Ring Town in one trip.

On top of this Pokemon was a beautiful and slender pale woman who looked to be about Spenser's age. Now, maybe it was because of Wes' entire life of living out in the desert but this woman looked like she would fit perfectly as a nomad in Orre. Her white hooded robes were designed nicely with red and purple. She had a hood over her head to cover her face though her pink hair was distinctly noticeable.

Wes noticed that this woman was wearing worn out hiking boots which caused Wes to suspect that this woman was from somewhere that had a lot of high altitude mountains.

"I cannot believe you made Professor Hastings to explain this crisis instead of yourself while getting yourself into another heap of trouble," the woman said immediately as she got off. The gusts of wind blew her long wavy pink hair in a uniform manner.

"Hello Elita," Spenser said, ignoring the woman's comment, and instead grinned in relief, "You have pretty good timing."

Wes and Rui were completely confused at this woman's appearance. Lunick seemed to know who she was though he seemed rather uneasy.

Elita – the only female Ranger leader in Fiore… Lunick had never met her personally but he certainly heard about her from Solana who seemed to admire Elita a lot. Wintown's rangers were skilled and top notch compared to all the other rangers in the other cities. Their leader had the skills and talent that rivaled Spenser's and Joel though her personality does seemed to come off as cold or uncaring sometimes.

"Care to explain why this place looked as though an earthquake went through?" Wes didn't seem remotely abashed by Elita's question even though it was partly his fault that the place looked like as it was.

"Unfortunately, I can't," Spenser grinned sheepishly. "I don't really have all the puzzle pieces myself to explain." He glanced at Wes as he said this. Elita looked immediately annoyed at Spenser's calm manner and shook her head in resignation.

"You never change." Elita's icy blue eyes seemed to confirm her cold demeanor as they swept across the area. Her eyes finally rested upon Wes' and Rui's. "May I ask who these two are?" Before Spenser could say anything, Rui spoke up.

"I'm Rui and this here is Wes. We're from Orre. It is very nice to meet you." Rui couldn't help but feel a sort of awe respect for this woman.

"Orre…" Elita said the word slowly as though trying to extract the meaning, "Ah, so you are the two that Spenser spoke about." Rui didn't know what Elita meant by this but apparently, Wes did and he didn't like the look the woman was giving him now.

"Where is Cameron?" Spenser interrupted, "I thought I told Murph to get him as well."

"I don't know," Elita sounded surprise for once. "I was merely told by Murph to come here despite the fact I live so far away."

"Hmm, strange," Spenser thought, "I know Cameron is slow… could he be late?" He looked worried though he knew Cameron's personality quite well. "I'll need to give him another call."

"How is Solana? I heard what happened to her." Elita's voice had a hint of compassion and a worried tone.

"She is back at Ring Town resting up. I need to go and check up on her in fact."

"Then let us go," Elita said as she got back on Skarmory who was pecking the ground rather impatiently. "The rest of my rangers should be here shortly to asset the damages. After I drop you guys off, I'll come back here and give a full report... though I still don't know exactly WHAT it is I'm supposed to be looking for." She glared at Spenser. "I hate being left in the dark."

"Elita," Spenser said, realizing that this comment was directed to him. He hated when Elita got mad. There were many things Spenser could face but the scorn of a woman was not one of them. "Wes here will be explaining the situation and I assure that you'll be notified later." Elita didn't seem satisfy with this answer and gave Wes a critical look. Wes looked back but didn't give a single hint of what he was going to explain. In the end, Elita decided that it was best to not argue.

"Get on then." Without objecting Elita's words, everybody quickly scampered up onto the Pokemon's back. Lunick took a while to get on since he was carrying Minun. With a spread of its glittering steel wings, Skarmory screeched and flapped its wings. Now flying high in the air, Lunick could see the ground shrinking below him and the forest now looked like thousands of tiny green dots.

With a shudder against the cold wind, Lunick, Wes, and Rui stared back at the crumpled remains of the factory as it slowly receded back into the horizon until it disappeared. The place was now a haunting memory to them all as though reminding them that what happened today was only just the beginning and things were going to get a lot worse from here on out.

**Author's Notes**

Urgh, that took a while to write. I didn't know where to cut off the story but I thought this place would be the best.

Updates are still going to be slow. I do hope to update BW story next if all goes well.

Anyways, let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**ZXCVBNMEM**

**Trainer-Ken**

**littlmiget123**

…

I'll see you in the next chapter!

**-JapanDreamer**


	15. A Brief History

**Disclaimer: Really? If I owned Pokémon, would I be here? XO**

Hey now! The next chapter is finally up! With luck, after my finals are done, I'll be able to bring out more updates for all my stories. Keep your fingers crossed and remember to review. As corny as it sounds, reviews actually motivate me to keep writing.

Last off, Wes and Lunick managed to escape from the factory and a whole lot of serious talking is going to get started.

Enjoy!

**Chapter 14:**

"It's pretty hot out here," Cameron sighed as he used his white towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead. The sun was blazing against the calm lapping waters of Summerland's ocean. The ranger leader of Summerland, Cameron, was cleaning up the trash that occasionally drifted into the ocean. Of course, to the ranger, it wasn't trash, it was treasure. Sure, he's not sure what he could do with it but still, it could be something pretty awesome.

Unlike the other leaders from the other parts of Fiore, Cameron was rather laid-back and easy going. He doesn't have the same intense drive as the other rangers despite his talent. A rather chubby and short man, he had reddish brown short hair and muscular arms. Today, he had been swimming in the deep blue waters and his ragged ripped black shirt and short green waterproof pants were soaking wet. Cameron hoisted up the heavy bag onto the makeshift wooden raft.

"Okay Pelipper, let's bring these things back." The large bird pelican Pokémon gave a throaty reply before grabbing the raft's rope with its beak. It pulled the raft slowly back to shore. Cameron sighed as he enjoyed the salty breeze that felt cold to his wet skin.

"Phew, I'm so glad we managed to get so much stuff today. I think this is our biggest haul yet." It was a relaxing journey back. Cameron lay on his back as he watched the blue sky above. He must have dozed off a bit because when he woke up he realized his Pelipper had stopped moving forward and was calling out to him.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Cameron asked, getting up into sitting position. He looked at the horizon where the shore was. He could see the tropical homes that were built on top of wooden docks that extended out into the ocean. Summerland was connected to a large tropical green jungle in the back and it was there that Cameron noticed gray smoke spewing into the sky and creating an ugly smudge against the pretty sky blue color. "What the-? A fire?" Cameron's laid back attitude immediately disappeared. This was bad. True, there hasn't been rain recently, but a fire around in this area was a serious issue. It could spread through the entire jungle and engulf the town as well.

"Pelipper! Full speed ahead!" The flying Pokémon flapped its wings hard and with great effort pulled Cameron and the raft to shore. Water sprayed everywhere, creating a nice rainbow effect.

Then, Cameron got his small communicator and pulled it out. "All Summerland rangers! Report to shore! There is a fire in Olive Jungle. Repeat, report to shore. This is not a drill!"

…

_Ring Town_

"We're back!" Lunick said in a rather relieved voice. Elita's Skarmory was speeding over the grassy plains and finally reached Ring Town. "Welcome to Ring Town!" Lunick said, unable to show off the place to Wes and Rui. After all, it was their first time seeing the place for the first time.

Compared to Fall City, the place was a lot quieter and smaller. There weren't sky scrapers or paved streets, only dirt roads and small garden homes. It was already late afternoon so the place was rather peaceful and quiet at the moment though the sight of Elita's Skarmory has several of the town folks gasping in amazement.

"Hey there Mr. Tom! How are those plants of yours doing? Hey, there Emily! Did you have fun in school today?" Lunick was greeting almost every person he saw in the streets. All of them smiled and wave back, giving greetings as well. This was definitely a small community where almost everybody knew each other kind of thing.

"This place is not much at first glance," Spenser explained, "But we have one of the largest areas to look over. With the forest and the town to take care of, we have quite a few rangers stationed though most are usually part timers." Spenser's Ferrow, who was glad to see the hometown, quickly sped up and flew ahead of the group. It was obvious that the Pokémon was going to announce the arrival of the other rangers.

"Wow, it's so peaceful. Like Agate Village." Rui couldn't help but close her eyes. It was the first time since being kidnapped that she felt so much at peace.

"Where's that, in Orre?" Lunick asked, unfamiliar with the name of the place. He was curious about the place. So far, Wes had not given much description of the place.

"It's my hometown," Rui said, smiling, "Most people who live there are retired trainers. Well, it doesn't look exactly like Agate Village but the place feels the same."

"You live there too?" Lunick questioned Wes. The guy shrugged his shoulders, not giving a sound reply. "I'll take that as a no then." Lunick was frustrated at Wes' lack of speaking. Would it kill the guy to talk?

"You know," Rui whispered to Lunick, "Wes doesn't really have a hometown. He's been on his own for a while. Truthfully, I think he always wanted to just settle down and live in a place like here." Lunick glanced at Wes who was sitting back as though enjoying the peace around the area. The hard look that was always on his face had softened up a bit and he looked more at peace.

"All right you guys, enough chit chat," Elita announced, "Get ready to descend." Skarmory slowly lowered in altitude as it landed next to the largest and most up-to-date building of the entire place. It was a smooth landing for the most part. Spenser quickly jumped down expertly from Skarmory and Lunick, Wes, and Rui did the same though Rui was a bit clumsier in the attempt.

"Thanks for the ride, Elita." Spenser said to the female ranger. "I owe you one."

"Hmph, well, just don't do something stupid again," Elita said. "I got to go over to that factory and see what I can find. All of you get some rest… And give my regards to Solana. I hope she gets better soon." With that, Skarmory flew back up into the sky and sped away as quickly as it came.

As soon as Elita left, Wes took a look around of the place. He noticed that the ranger base looked exactly like the one in Fall City. It seemed out of place in this area with its rugged and more community look. Well, at least there was one familiar building he recognized. The glass doors slid open, revealing a worried chubby brown hair Murph and… that curly blond hair girl back in Fall City who called Wes a pervert. What was her name again?

"Ranger Spenser," the girl gasped in relief, "Thank goodness you're here!"

"Spenser!" Murph said, sounding relieved as well.

"Aria?" Spenser looked surprise to see the girl, "You're already here? Is Hastings with you as well?"

"Yes," Aria said, bobbing her head up and down, "He is still doing some sort of experiment and wish to be left alone for the moment."

"Can we see Solana now?" Lunick asked anxiously. Solana's health had been on Lunick's mind for quite some time despite the threatening issue that they were now facing.

"Oh it's you," Aria said, sounding annoyed at the sight of Lunick.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lunick shot back.

"H-hey guys," Murph said, sounding flustered, "Let's not fight already." Aria didn't reply back because she suddenly noticed a familiar white hair person.

"YOU!" Aria gasped and pointed rudely at Wes. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same." Aria glared at the annoyed Wes who was determined to not make eye contact. He acted as though he was way more interested with anything besides the angry female ranger.

_Well, at least the two of us agree that we don't like Aria,_ Lunick thought as he watched this interaction.

"Ummm, am I missing something here?" Rui asked, popping out from behind Wes. "Do you know her?" Aria blinked in surprise at this new girl. Who was she and why did she know this… this pervert like they were friends? Doesn't she know that this guy was dangerous?

"Her?" Wes gave a glance at Aria before turning back to Rui, "Not really."

Aria immediately flared up at Wes' tone. "How dare you!" Aria sputtered, "I'm Aria – the top ranger from Fall City!"

"And the most annoying," Lunick muttered to himself.

"Enough," Spenser sighed, wondering how he managed to deal with so many teenager drama every day. "Can we discuss this inside? We're attracting quite a crowd." Sure enough, most of the locals were staring. They seemed to be particular curious at Wes and Rui since the two obviously looked like they were not locals or even from Fiore.

"No problem," Wes said, walking inside and not giving the furious Aria a second glance. But then he suddenly stopped as though he remembered something. "Oh yes. There is something I need to give you." Wes took out a Poke ball. It opened but instead of giving off a white light, it revealed a blue light which means that Wes was releasing the Pokémon back to the wild. Dodrio popped out and gave three squawks.

"Hey! That's Joel's!" Aria exclaimed, recognizing the Pokémon. Then she realized what was wrong with this picture. "Hey, wait a minute! Why do you have his Pokémon?"

"Now that I'm done traveling, you can give Dodrio back to your leader." With that, Wes left without another word. Dodrio looked slightly hurt at the sudden and abrupt release and the cold attitude Wes was giving off now that Dodrio had nothing to do with him. Wes didn't even say goodbye.

"Hey what's your problem? Trying to act all cool and all!" Aria said furiously before she turned to Rui. "He is such a cold guy. How can you stand him?" Rui gave an uneasy smile at the girl but didn't respond. Rui had a feeling that this was someone she didn't want to mess with. Instead, Rui quickly followed after Wes.

"Well, this is not off to a good start," Spenser sighed as he looked at Dodrio. "Anyways, I'm going to talk with Professor Hastings. Take a short break. We'll need to meet up to discuss everything."

"Yes sir!" Lunick and Murph nodded before leaving.

"And Aria," Spenser added, "I need you to do a mission for me."

"Of course," Aria said, ready for duty. She was excited to finally contribute something to this dangerous mission.

"First off, is Joel okay?"

"Yes, he's recovering quickly. The injuries were less serious than we thought," Aria said. "I just got off the phone from him and he really wants an updated status report."

"Hmph, that's Joel all right. Always ready to get back to work… Okay, Elita has left to go and check out the forest. I need you to go back to Fall City with Dodrio. Joel is going to need his Pokémon. And then, tell him I'll give a full report."

"Wait, shouldn't I stay here?" Aria asked, surprised at the trivial mission she was given. "I did come here to help."

"Fall City needs you," Spenser said, "I'm grateful for you watching over the base while I was gone, but it is best if you help out Joel as well." Aria knew Spenser was right but she didn't feel too happy with the idea. She swallowed her pride for the moment.

"Very well." Aria turned to Dodrio. "Come on Dodrio. Let's go. Joel is waiting for you." Aria tried to climb on the Pokémon's back but the Dodrio squawked in anger and pushed Aria off, making her land on her behind. "OW! What was that for?" Then, without hesitation, Dodrio ran off down the road, clearly deciding to get back to Fall City without having to carry anyone, let alone Aria.

"HEY! Get back here!" The female ranger ran and tried to catch up with the fast Pokémon.

_Poor Aria_, Spenser thought watching the two disappear into the sunset. Hopefully, Dodrio would be kind enough to slow down a bit for Aria at least.

…

Solana woke up to the sound of someone calling out her name. She slowly opened her eyes and after realizing she was lying on a bed, turned to see someone very familiar in front of her.

"Luncik?"

"Hey, Solana." The black hair ranger sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. I was really worried." Solana noticed that Lunick looked worn out. He had scratches, a couple of bruises, and an exhausted and hungry look on his face. Nevertheless, he was trying hard to keep a smile on his face.

"That should be my line," Solana replied back. "You almost got yourself killed again."

"Well, I'm still in one piece and for the record, I had to save you this time," Lunick retorted back, sounding hurt, "So how about a 'thank you' to your savior?" Solana rolled her eyes up to the ceiling before realizing something.

"Hey, where is Minun?" Usually, Minun would be resting on Lunick's shoulder but the little mouse Pokémon was nowhere to be seen.

"Ah, it got injured and it's being treated."

"Will it be okay?" Solana asked, sounding genuinely worried now.

"Yeah, just need a lot of rest," Lunick said though his reassurance had a hint of concern. "Like you should be doing."

"I was until someone woke me up," Solana said.

"Hey, you didn't have to wake up if you didn't want to."

"Lunick?" The two bickering rangers turned to see a red hair girl poking her head into the room. She looked a bit uneasy.

"Rui, you're okay," Solana said, sounding relieved.

"Yes. I'm glad to see you're doing well as well." Rui then turned to Lunick. "Lunick, there is food prepared in the kitchen if you want to get something to eat."

"FOOD?" Lunick quickly jumped to his feet. "Great, I'm starved!" Quickly, Lunick passed Rui and left the room.

"Boys," Rui said, rolling her eyes, "food is always on their minds." Solana couldn't help but laugh in agreement. "Though, he really was genuinely worried about you," Rui continued.

"I know," Solana sighed as she looked out the window to see the reddish glow fill in the room. "I guess I still see him as an rookie that needs to be babysit a lot."

"How long until they consider you fully recover?"

"A few days at the most."

"That's good," Rui said and then her stomach started growling. Embarrassed, Rui said, "Well… I hate to leave you here but I definitely need to get something to eat."

"Go ahead," Solana said, laughing slightly, "I'll be fine on my own. Just make sure to eat before Lunick is at the table. Or else you won't be able to eat at all."

…

Lunick was gobbling his meal faster than he could swallow. Besides the 'poisonous' mushrooms that Wes had cooked earlier, Lunick haven't eaten all entire day and was famished. Wes ate as well though he didn't consume his food like a ravaging hungry Snorlax. Rui was eating fast as well. Being held hostage in a factory worked up quite an appetite. They were in the base's cafeteria though it was rather small and could only hold about fifteen to twenty people. Right now, they were all by themselves and had an all-you-can-eat buffet.

"So rangers only have one partner and they don't keep them in Poke balls?" Wes asked Murph. He seemed to be much more interested in learning about Fiore's ranger system rather than the food.

"Yes," Murph said. He was the only one not eating but that was because he had already eaten before. "Mine is a Slowpoke and Lunick's is Minun."

"So you borrow Pokémon's powers to help out but it's a one time use before you send them back to the wild?"

"Yes. Usually, we only need to use the Pokémon's power just to help out a certain situations. Or when a person's Pokémon is going out of control, we handle it. Mostly, we do community services but sometimes a serious situation like a natural disaster comes up and everybody comes together to help."

"Everybody?" Wes said, sounding bewildered at the word. "Exactly how many rangers are out here?"

"More than forty," Lunick interrupted through a full mouth of mash potatoes. "There are four ranger bases in the four cities here. Ring Town (where we are), Fall City (that's where we were earlier), and Elita (whom you have met earlier with the Skarmory) is from Wintown which is up north, and Summerland which is an island down south."

"That's a lot of rangers for such a small island," Rui had to interrupt though she didn't talk with her mouth full.

"Well, most of us are part timers or only work during the holidays. We are one of the few places that have rangers focused solely in one region. Most other ranger bases travel around and merely stay long enough to help out important and probably dangerous missions." Lunick gave a satisfying sigh as he rubbed his stomach. "That sure hit the spot."

At that moment, the door slid open and in stepped in Professor Hastings and Spenser. Spenser had a grim look on his face as though he was being troubled by quite a few things in his mind.

"Professor Hastings!" Lunick exclaimed. "Hello there."

"Hello there Lunick. I see that you made it out in one piece. You must tell me of your adventure," Hastings sounded jolly despite the situation though he did seem to be trying to liven up the atmosphere. "Wes," Hastings added, directing the conversation now to the white hair teenager, "it is good to see you again." Hastings was acting rather nice considering how the last time they had met Wes had slipped sleeping pills into the professor's coffee cup.

"And you too professor," Wes said, sounding polite for once.

"We need to have a group meeting now," Spenser said, rather tensely. Lunick and Murph immediately got up but Spenser held up his hand. "Here will be okay. I want Wes and Rui need to stay here as well to explain some things." Lunick and Murph glanced at the two Orre citizens before nodding and clearing the table.

"Well then," Spenser said after he and Hastings sat down in two empty chairs provided by Murph. "As we all know, there is a group called Team Cipher running around in Fiore. This team is not from here and are actually from a region called Orre." Lunick glanced at Wes who remained calm of the situation. He didn't seem to react to this piece of information.

"From what is gathered, they are here with a certain mission. However, we are not sure of their objective of coming here. However, we do have a clue which what Professor Hastings is here to explain."

"Allow me to show you all what I have discovered," Professor Hastings said as he stood up.

The professor took out a normal white spinning top with a purple dome shape glass in the center – the standard issue that every ranger was given. "The Capture Styler is used by rangers in order for wild Pokemon to help out with our daily lives. To do this, the device creates a trail of beam as I'm sure all the rangers here know. This beam transmits the wave energy of friendship, allowing wild Pokemon become more incline to help out."

_Really? Energy of 'friendship'?_ That sounded pretty stupid in Wes' head though he didn't say it out loud.

"However, this device Wes has given to me is incredible. I've never seen anything like this. It is like a normal Capture Styler," Professor Hasting explained while taking out and laying the broken dark purple and black colored object on the table for everyone to see. "Besides the different color schemes, it has an extra feature in it." He held his hand in the air and for a moment Lunick didn't see anything.

"Professor Hastings," Spenser said upon closer inspection, "It's a microchip." Sure enough it was. It was so small that it was almost invisible to the naked eye if one wasn't looking hard enough.

"Not just any chip," Professor Hastings said, with his thick eyebrows raised. "This chip's memory data consists of dark energy's wavelengths. When this Capture Styler is used, the chip, instead of using friendship wavelengths, amplifies the darkness in a Pokémon's heart and then diminishes all other emotions from it." Professor Hastings looked extremely grim now.

"Wait," Murph said. He was still trying to absorb all the information given to him. "You mean…?"

"That chip is what shuts the door to Pokémon's hearts," Rui spoke up. "It leaves the Pokémon nothing but the instinct to mercilessly attack and kill. It sees everyone and anything as an enemy." That was unpleasant information to digest.

"Y-you're… You're joking." Lunick finally choked out.

"I hardly think this is a good time to joke Lunick," Wes said quietly.

"But this is crazy!" Lunick continued, refusing to believe such a thing. "What in the world would they gain by making Pokémon become… killing machines? Why would anyone do something that-that inhumane?"

"You don't get it," Wes said angrily, "We don't have tea parties in Orre like you do. The law of the land is that the strongest one will survive. And this means the one with the strongest Pokémon. However, training is an incredibly slow process and most people hate wasting their time like that. Feelings limit the effectiveness and the strength of a Pokémon. Think it from Team Cipher's perspective, what better way to increase your Pokémon's power than to remove emotions and give it the belief that the only one sole reason to live is to kill?"

"Is that why you know them?" Lunick snapped, standing up and causing his chair to crash to the ground. He was furious that Wes didn't seem to take this as an important issue but rather seemed to act complacent. "Because you agree with these… these… monstrous idea?"

"L-lunick!" Murph said uneasily. But before Murph could try to calm the situation…

"Don't talk to Wes like that!" Rui shot back. "He would never side with those jerks!" Although she was friendlier compare to Wes, Rui definitely wouldn't stand down to a horrible comment about him like that. Wes, on the other hand, didn't bat an eye to Lunick's comment.

"Then why in the world did he worked for them? How can we trust someone who is in a group like that?" Lunick didn't care now that he was yelling at a girl which was totally against his style.

"Lunick!" Spenser barked, "You've gone too far. There is no need to place anger on others. Sit down now!" The reluctant ranger sat back down and Rui, though glaring still, calmed down a bit. She was shaking with anger but she didn't say another word.

"I'm not part of Team Cipher," Wes said. There was an icy tone in his voice. He was definitely mad this time.

"Then why in the world did that Gonzap asked you to come and rejoin them?" Spenser asked carefully. He wasn't fazed by Wes' outburst and was approaching this calmly.

"That's different."

"How so?" Lunick shot back before Spenser could continue to interrogate. "I was there. I heard that guy. How is it different? That mustache man is part of Team Cipher."

"He isn't," Wes said, sounding even angrier, "Gonzap _may _be working with Team Cipher but the man certainly isn't a member."

"Sorry my boy," Professor Hastings interrupted, "But I'm afraid I'm not following with what you're saying. Perhaps you can enlighten us with a bit more information." There was a moment of stillness. Rui looked anxiously at Wes' silent figure. He was a private guy and didn't like to share his history. It took Rui months to learn a bit about Wes' past though not all of it. Who knew how much he would reveal and whether or not he would reveal anything important. Finally, Spenser spoke up again.

"Wes," Spenser said in a serious but tired tone, "We're getting more confused with these facts. I think you better give us a bit of history background. I know this means I'm asking for your personal history with this group of people but we're not here to judge you because of that. We need to know who our enemy is and what exactly we're dealing with."

Wes rubbed the temple of his head and was in deep thought as he mulled over Spenser's words. The slowly and quietly, he spoke. "Where to begin…?"

"The beginning," Spenser stated logically. "Perhaps best to start with how you knew these people." Wes was quiet again though the silence didn't last as long as before.

"I was part of a small group called Team Snagem headed by the man you guys know as Gonzap," Wes started slowly as though still deciding whether or not to start at this point of his history. "To keep it simple, the main goal was to usually steal Pokémon."

"I can already guess why you guys are called Snagem. Very creative name."

"SHH!" Rui and Murph hissed at Lunick.

"While this group wasn't doing what you might call legal work," Wes continued as though he wasn't interrupted, "I'll admit that back then, Team Snagem was a bunch of petty thieves. They had caused trouble but not enough to have the authority try to crack us down hard. Until that day…" Now Wes stopped talking as though bringing up an unpleasant memory.

"That day?" Professor Hasting repeated the word to remind to Wes to continue.

"The day when Cipher requested for our… services. They offered "partnership" if they could pull off their biggest project yet. It would've benefited greatly to the team which is why Gonzap took the offer." Wes sounded really bitter at this point.

"How so?"

"Gonzap was planning to expand the group into a fully operational organization," Wes said, "But to do that, he needed money and technology. Team Cipher had both. So it was an easy arrangement. Team Snagem provides the grunt work and steal Pokémon for experiments, and Team Cipher gives us the technology to steal Pokémon more efficiently."

"Steal? How in the world do you do that?" Murph asked. "I mean, trainers have a pact with their Pokémon or something like that right? And what about the Poke balls?" Wes, this time, took out his PDA and after pressing a couple of buttons, showed the screen to everyone. There was a picture of what appeared to be a large rectangular machine with mechanical arms protruding and wheels.

"Are you telling us that Team Cipher invented vending machines to take over the world?" Lunick asked, sounding incredulous.

"This is the first generation of the Snag machine," Wes explained, slightly impatient, "It converts Poke balls into Snag balls. They are regular Poke balls but have been charged up. They will break bond that trainers' Pokemon have with their Poke ball. As a result, these Pokemon are stolen and become Snagem's properties. Officials can't do much if trainers can't give factual proof that the Pokémon was stolen. In our region, the Poke ball is what determines ownership."

"You're kidding me," Hastings whispered in horror as he stared at the screen. "With all that technology power, they make stuff like this?"

"However, there were problems…"

"Like what?" Murph didn't understand the situation as quickly as everybody else was.

"It was too big," Spenser said wisely, noticing the dimensions of the box on the screen. "Not a good thing if you're trying to steal people's Pokémon. I'm guessing transporting it is also a hassle."

"Precisely," Wes nodded, "which is why Team Cipher had to come up with something lighter and more portable if they wanted Team Snagem to steal Pokémon. It took a while but they finally did it. They have succeeded in making a prototype."

"How does this new machine work?" Spenser asked, looking very grim.

"You simply have to attach it on your arm and provide a Poke ball and the machine will do the rest. It doesn't have as much power so battling and weakening the Pokémon is required. But it works pretty well."

"Wait…" Lunick said slowly as he eyed Wes' left arm. Realization dawned on the ranger's face. "You mean…"

"Yes," Wes said, pointing to the device on his arm. "Everyone, you are looking at the first portable prototype of the Snag Machine."

**Author's Notes**

I figure we should have some serious background information even though some of you guys probably already know all this stuff.

Things don't look too good at the moment. Hopefully, nothing bad will happen to our protagonists.

Anyways, other random news. Black 2 and White 2 have been officially announced and new stuff has been shown. Opinions? Thoughts?

Anyways, let's thank my reviewers before I go.

…

**Shiny Kirby**

**741852AuthorNicolaStarlaLili**

**ZXCVBNMEM**

**WildCroconaw**

**littlmiget123**

**Trainer-Ken**

…

That's it from me. Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter.

**-JapanDreamer**


	16. A Volcanic Split

**Disclaimer: Don't own Pokémon**

Oh my gosh. I am so sorry that this chapter had taken extremely long. I've been having _major _writer's block on this story and had been putting it off for so long because of this. I'm going to try my best to update this story more frequently like my other stories.

Anyways, enough excuses. Enjoy the chapter. Hopefully everybody remembers what happened. XO

**Chapter 15:**

"Ingenious," Professor Hasting marveled at the technology before him. Wes' arm was held up awkwardly so that the professor could see the device attached to his arm. The trainer had one eyebrow raised in annoyance while the professor seemed to ignore his surroundings. "It was made to fit perfectly with the person's arm it was attached to. The mobility, the flexibility… Of course, it seemed to be heavy but if I can make a smaller and more portable with a bit of modification of course, and this kind of technology I could create stylers that won't…"

"Hastings," Spenser coughed in embarrassment, "When you're done admiring, can we please get back to the subject?"

"Oh yes, of course," Hasting looked slightly red at the cheeks as he tried to look professional. Wes looked relieved as he jerked his arm from the professor's grasp and moved his arm a bit to get the blood flowing again. Slowly, he noticed that everybody's gaze was on him as though expecting him to say something. All around him were eyes of apprehension and perhaps… fear?

Wes brushed off the looks. He was used to this kind of treatment. It wasn't his first time trying to deal with something like this. Being in leagues with Team Snagem, he didn't really get royal treatment from civilians. Except with Rui. She was the only one who didn't respect him out of fear or show any sign of fear around him. Though she did think of him as her 'knight in shining armor' after he unintentionally saved her and haven't been able to brush her off since.

Lunick stared wordlessly as though he was just seeing Wes for who he really was for the first time. This guy… had the power to steal other people's Pokémon? The guy denied being part of Team Cipher, yet he was wearing technology they made and were planning to use. The distrust started to build up again inside of the ranger despite all the times that Wes had helped save them. Wes stole Joel's Dodrio but Lunick didn't really give it much thought until now. That was how Wes did it. That event had bugged him a lot but Lunick never got around asking Wes what exactly happened. Although Wes claimed it was a good cause, that sort of power could be easily abused.

"Wes, if I may, why didn't you say anything about this earlier?" Spenser asked. The white haired trainer shrugged his shoulders with indifference.

"I was more concerned on rescuing Rui," Wes explained. Rui turned red with embarrassment and slight happiness despite the situation. "This technology," Wes held up his left arm, "is not a good show and tell kind of presentation. Anyways, I wasn't really interested in giving out my life story to strangers in an unknown region until I realized that things here were worse than I thought."

"Worse than you thought?" Hastings questioned.

"Team Cipher is not working alone. Someone from Fiore is helping Team Cipher in creating these devices." There was a deadly silence as the magnitude of Wes' words was comprehended.

"There," Wes said slowly, "is a traitor in you midst."

"NO WAY!" Lunick defended, standing up and almost upending the cups on the table. "None of the rangers would do such a thing! That's a lie." The ranger couldn't believe it. All the rangers had one important goal and that was to help the community and Pokémon. None of them would agree to use status to… break the bonds and trusts. Still, there was a prickle of uneasy doubt in everybody's mind.

"I'm not saying it's a ranger," Wes sighed impatiently, "I'm saying that someone who knows a lot about the stylus is working with Team Cipher. As smart as Team Cipher is, there is no way they can come up with this kind of technology in such a short amount of time." Immediately, everyone glanced at Professor Hastings.

"Hey!" Professor Hastings exclaimed, raising both of his hands into the air, "Do I look like someone who would work for an evil organization?" All of the rangers, even Spenser, looked embarrassed and tried to look away.

"It could also be," Rui interjected, "a person who might not be willing to help. He may be threatened. It doesn't have to be a traitor." She was trying to instill some positive outlook in such a negative situation.

"Wait, Wes, what makes you think that it is a traitor?" Murph spoke up. His cubby face that usually had a lax smile was now filled with concern.

"That factory we came across earlier, it had a specific purpose other than a secret base."

"Really?" Lunick finally spoke up and sounding surprised. "You mean like they were trying to make something?" Lunick only recalled the long hallways and locked doors. It never occurred to him that the people were actually manufacturing products."

"Not trying. They are. That device," Wes motioned to the dark colored and broken styler on the table. "They're mass producing that stuff."

"WHAT?!" Lunick exclaimed, "They're making a whole bunch of these… these… evil stylers?!"

"Wow, evil stylers… your vocabulary continues to astound me," Wes said sarcastically. If the situation wasn't so serious, Lunick wouldn't hesitate to punch Wes or at least state that he would.

"Wes," Hastings interjected before another fight could start, "I thought you said that Team Cipher did not have the knowledge or the time to create regular stylers in the first place. If that is so, how in the world can they have the time to specifically make stylers that could envelope darkness within the Pokémon's heart? That would require at least years of more research."

"Hastings," Spensers interjected, answering the question. His face looked pale as though he understood and connected all the pieces already. "You said it yourself. The stylers are exactly alike except one thing and that is this chip. So…"

"Oh no," Hastings muttered, finally understanding the grim picture Wes had painted. "Of course. Why didn't I see this earlier?"

"What? I don't get it," Lunick whined. Murph had a look of puzzlement on his face as well.

"If you think about it, it's quite simple," Spenser explained slowly and carefully, "This styler is exactly like ours. They already have the tool to create darkness within a Pokémon's heart. All they have to do is modify it so that it can fit into the device."

"Thus," Hastings concluded, "they need to build two factories – one to make the stylers and the other to make the chips."

"In Orre," Rui put in her thoughts, "a stylus factory would send out red flags. At least, having stylers found in Orre would send red flags to you guys."

"So," Hastings pointed out, "it's easier for this Cipher group to convince someone from Fiore to provide a styler factory. All they need to do is make the factory for the chips." Professor Hastings immediately started to jolt down notes as though trying to create a tactical plan.

Suddenly, Lunick understood what everybody was implying. "So if we find the factory making stylus…"

"We can find out who is really behind this mess," Rui finished Lunick's sentence. She looked excited, feeling the prickling sensation of another adventure.

Lunick couldn't believe it. It felt like the entire ordeal they had just gone through would stop everything. All their problems solved. Except one problem…

"So where is this factory?" Murph asked the question in Lunick's mind.

"It has to be hidden in a way where the rangers and the public wouldn't find it suspicious," Spenser muttered softly.

"Fall City!" Professor Hastings exclaimed suddenly, looking up from his notes.

"What?"

"Fall City," Hastings repeated and showed his notes. "That guy we captured at the Krokka Tunnel managed to spill that they were using the tunnel for delivery or something. And it hit me. There is an abandon factory there." He used air quotes when he said 'abandoned'.

"Abandoned? How long?"

"Don't know, for a while. Some businessman bought the space but never gotten around to fixing it."

"Then that's the place," Spenser said with conviction. "We need to get there and figure out what is going on."

"We'll call Joel to notify him of the situation and get the Dragnoite Bus. It'll be the quickest way to get there."

"Ranger Spenser," a voice called out into the cafeteria. Everybody's heads turned to see the Ringtown Ranger base's receptionist come in. Her face looked extremely tight with worry. "Cameron had sent a message."

_Cameron? Who is that?_ Rui looked at the other rangers for an answer but no one said anything. They were too busy taking note of the urgency in the woman's voice.

"What did he say?"

"It's bad," the lady said grimly. "The volcano in Summerland has erupted."

"What?!" All of the rangers immediately stood up in shock. Wes and Rui looked at each other with confusion. A volcano? Here in this region? Now? The concern about Team Cipher has suddenly shifted to the urgency of some natural disaster.

"That's impossible," Professor Hastings said as though saying it could change what was happening, "That thing had been dormant for decades!"

"Well, it isn't anymore."

"This is bad," Spenser muttered and immediately took charge. Wes could see the leadership coming out of the ranger. "Are the people being evacuated? No, wait get me on line. I need to speak to him."

"I don't think I can get Cameron back on the phone," the receptionist said. "You know how the reception is in the jungle. But I have contacted Fall City for the Dragonite Bus. It should be here shortly. The rangers at Fall City are taking care of the people who are coming into the ports."

"Okay, we're going to need every ranger on deck. Call all of the other Ringtown rangers. Let them know that it is an emergency."

"Wes! Where are you going?" Lunick demanded. He was the only ranger in the mist who noticed Wes leaving.

"I'm going to Fall City," Wes stated flatly. "You guys can do whatever it is that you do. You all seemed to like to change your minds so much and get easily distracted."

"What?" Lunick was trying to grasp at what exactly Wes was acting so angry about.

"All of you guys were on board in trying to stop Team Cipher and then decide to drop everything? Not really goal oriented are you?"

"Wes," Lunick said angrily, "do you know what a volcano is? This volcano is going to erupt and probably destroy an entire population!"

"I'm not concern about environmental issues," Wes said coolly, "I'm more concern about stopping Team Cipher. As you should to."

"We're talking about lives here!" Lunick roared angrily. Here they go again. Wes and Lunick continued to bicker despite the amount of people around them.

"And I'm pretty sure the rangers in Summerland can take care of it. After all, people are being evacuated."

"Do you know how many Pokémon live on that island?" Lunick demanded. "This isn't some building on fire, we're talking about an entire island in danger if we don't go and help!"

"If we don't find out who is working with Team Cipher then you're going to be in a whole lot worse trouble than some volcano," Wes snapped back. "You guys should be focusing more on the bigger picture here."

Lunick couldn't believe it. It was just like back in the forest when Wes refused to save Solana. Wes was turning a blind eye to people who were in need. Any respect Lunick had for Wes was gone at this point and the ranger got up and glared inches away from the white hair trainer's face.

"This isn't about the bigger picture for you, this is about revenge! If you haven't noticed, you're not the boss of us! We're Pokémon rangers! We protect people no matter what. We don't consider anybody expendable! You're so bent on taking down Team Cipher that you're willing to sacrifice anybody in the way. You're exactly like them!"

And again, just like back in the forest, Wes looked like he had been slapped across the face.

"That's not true!" Rui roared back. "Wes is nothing like those guys! He saved Solana at the factory remember?!" The girl's face was red with anger. Lunick, still seething with anger, whipped around to Rui and stared incredulous.

"Speaking of the factory, you know why that place collapsed?! Huh?" Lunick pointed directly at Wes, "It's because THIS guy here used those 'dark' Pokémon to take down the whole building. He is bent on revenge that he didn't even consider that there might be innocent people in the building still. I'm not the loose cannon around here. He is!" There was a stunned silence as everybody slowly turned to Wes as though hoping for an explanation.

"Wes," Spenser spoke up, sounding angry for the first time, "is this true?"

"Wes…" Rui's eyes pleaded silently for Wes to speak up… to say something… anything…

However, the trainer didn't defend himself. Instead, he grabbed his bag and turned to head to the door and slammed it shut with enough force to cause the room to slightly shake. The air was filled with unhappy silence. Rui was too thunderstruck to move.

"Good riddance!" Lunick finally said. "Maybe that'll give him a wake-up call."

"Okay, enough," Spenser said finally in a forceful calm tone. "Lunick, you and I are going to the volcano to aid."

"I'm going too!" Rui announced suddenly.

"What?"

"I'm going to help out. I care about what happens here!"

"Leave it to the professionals," Lunick said. "There is no need." He still hated arguing against girls but Rui wasn't the type to back down and act weak.

"I'm going!" Rui seemed final on the decision and wasn't taking no for an answer.

"Spenserrrrr," Lunick looked desperately at his leader.

"I'm sorry, but Lunick is right. I cannot allow civilians or foreigners into such a dangerous place." Rui glared angrily at Spenser but the man didn't back down.

"You will be assisting Professor Hastings. I think with your knowledge of Orre, you'll be able to provide him at least some leads as to what to do about the factory. Murph, you will notify all the other ranger bases."

"Ummm, Spenser?"

"Yes Murph?"

"What about Wes?" Murph looked frightened for asking such a question and there was a long silence.

"We'll leave him alone for now," Spenser said finally, "Right now; we have a bigger problem to deal with.

…

"Hey!" Wes ignored the voice and continued down the dirt path. It was going to take a day to travel back to Fall City on foot. He was starting to wish he hadn't released that Dodrio. There was no way he was going back to that place. He had more important things to do. How dare Lunick talked about him like that?

"Hey! Would you turn around so I can talk to you?!"

Fed up now, Wes turned to see that it was a turquoise hair girl with a female Plusle on her shoulder. She had on the similar red colored ranger uniform jacket as Lunick had and her stylus was attached to her belt. There were bandages wrapped around one of her arms and legs.

"Do I know you?" Wes asked though his face remained stony.

"Well, I hope so. Or else you just saved someone without even knowing them." The girl gave a playful smile and Wes immediately realized who she was. Or at least, he knew her name.

"Oh. So you're Solana." Wes removed some of the hostility in his voice.

"Pleasure to meet you Wes." The ranger held out her hand but Wes didn't take it and instead responded with a question.

"What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be resting?"

"Heard you were leaving without saying goodbye." There was a long pause before Solana added, "Lunick had a loud voice. I heard everything."

"So you're here to yell at me too? Want to call me a filthy hypocrite as well?" Wes was ready to turn and leave again.

"Oh I'm not here to berate you for what you had done. Lunick already got that covered. Though he is right. Luck was on your side this time but you really need to start evaluating your surroundings before someone you care about gets hurt."

"So what do you want?" Wes said, brushing Solana's warning aside. The ranger looked as though she wanted to lecture some more but decided against it.

"Ever heard of divide and conquer?"

"Excuse me?" Ask one question and get thrown one back in the face.

"Well, I'm guessing you're after the factory. I think we should team up." Solana was definitely not taking no for an answer. Despite the injuries, the girl seemed to be full of energy. Her personality reminded Wes of Rui. Minus the red hair of course.

"You're injured. I don't need someone who is just going to drag me down. This is going to be a stealth mission."

"Please, without me, who is going to help you around Fall City? You could say that someone would need to keep an eye on you in case you start… rampaging again. Besides, I bet you could use some transportation right about now."

Wes fell silent now. Granted, Solana could be helpful to the mission but at the same time…

"Anyways, I need to payback Team Cipher for what they had done to the Pokémon here," Solana continued, "I think I would be more of use helping you then trying to go through Summerland's jungle in my condition. Besides, Spenser and Lunick would never allow me to go with them."

"You do realize that you're disobeying your leader's orders to stay in bed."

"Well, I decided to take a leaf out of your book," Solana grinned, seeing that Wes wasn't really disagreeing with the partnership now. "There is always a time to break a few rules. And speaking of breaking of rules, we need to borrow some rides if we want to get to Fall City before nightfall."

"You have a plan?"

"Oh yes," Solana grinned in a way that even made Wes uncomfortable. "Just leave everything to me."

**Author's Notes**

This story will pick up in the next chapter. Just have to tie up some loose ends.

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter.

-**JapanDreamer**


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